


Butterfly Effect

by ramcannedcheese



Series: Mind Over Matter, Change Over Time [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Childhood Trauma, Families of Choice, Family, Fix-It, Found Family, Healing, Healthy Relationships, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kid Fic, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Multiple Relationships, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, Personal Growth, Therapy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:14:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 70,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ramcannedcheese/pseuds/ramcannedcheese
Summary: Kakashi can't stand the thought of Naruto being alone anymore and adopts the four year old boy. In doing so, he inspires others and unknowingly changes the fate of the village.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka
Series: Mind Over Matter, Change Over Time [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2058294
Comments: 118
Kudos: 440





	1. Coming Home

“Lord Hokage, if I could speak to you for a moment?” Kakashi stood with his back ramrod straight, trying to appear serious, despite his usual lazy nature. It had the effect he hoped it would and the Hokage quickly dismissed the council members so he could speak to Kakashi privately. 

Once they were gone, the older man turned to give Kakashi his full attention. “What would you like to discuss, Kakashi?” 

“It’s Naruto, sir. I would like to adopt him.” Kakashi knew he needed to be as clear as possible with this request or it would be denied so he decided to get directly to the point. 

The Hokage seemed a bit taken back from Kakashi’s rather bold statement. He leaned back in his chair, eyebrows raised slightly. “I can’t help but be surprised, hearing this from you. You’re aware of the difficulties surrounding Naruto’s situation. The council has long since determined that Naruto is too dangerous to be raised by a family.” Kakashi suppressed the eye roll that threatened to escape. 

“With all due respect sir, that’s bullshit and you know it.” The Hokage’s eyebrows reached new heights, almost disappearing into his receding hairline. 

“Would you mind explaining your reasoning that this decision made by our most respected elders is ‘bullshit’?” The man’s mouth was set in a solid frown but at least he seemed willing to listen so Kakashi barreled ahead. 

“Naruto is a child. He could grow up hating this village if we treat him like an outsider. And I understand the concern about the nine-tails but his seal is holding just fine from what I’ve read.” It was a not so subtle reminder at just what Kakashi was capable of. All personal information was kept under lock and key, more often than not under guard as well. Child’s play for Kakashi.

The Hokage’s eyes narrowed. “And what exactly have you read?”

“There are reports from the orphanage, but you already know everything on that matter sir. You’ve read them as well.” It was difficult to not smirk but Kakashi managed to keep his expression neutral. He couldn’t blow this. 

The other man nodded. “Yes, I have. They also say that Naruto is a notorious trouble maker, that he’s difficult to work with. He’s loud, abrasive, and rude to his caretakers. What makes you think you could handle such a child?”

“I’m one of Konoha’s elite. If I can’t handle one child then I should probably be demoted.” Kakashi gave a shrug at the end of his statement. He didn’t exactly have much experience with kids, that much was true, but he had always been a quick study.

“I think your reason for being able to handle Naruto is the exact reason you can’t. You have missions Kakashi and a responsibility to this village. We need you out in the field, not at home making dinner for a toddler.” Something about this statement didn’t sit right with Kakashi. He worked to keep the emotion out of his voice when he spoke again.

“I have a responsibility to this village, which means everyone in it. You’re telling me I should sit back and watch while the only person I can consider family grows up alone?” His tone might have been a bit more biting then he had intended but it seemed to have gotten through. 

The Hokage paused. He gave Kakashi a hard look, one that dug deep into the younger man’s soul, all without leaving his chair. When he blinked, his face shifted into a small, melancholy smile. “The boy reminds me of them as well. But you have to understand, it’s not a simple situation. The council has determined that the boy will not be adopted, they insist it’s not safe.” 

Kakashi could feel his only chance slipping away. If he didn’t convince the Hokage now it was unlikely the man would ever change his mind. He let go of his careful hold on his emotions and immediately felt tears form in his covered eye. Raw pain welled up in his throat, forcing him to swallow thickly before he gave it one last try. “Then who better to take care of the kid than me? I can hold my own should the worst happen. I have a working knowledge of how to use and maintain seals. I can train him to control his charka from an early age. I can work with him to keep his emotions calm. He can have a home in this village, rather than just live in it.”

For a moment Kakashi thought that the Hokage was about to turn him away. The older man had lowered his head, deep in thought. If this gamble didn’t work Kakashi wasn’t sure what he would do. He knew he had to do something for Naruto but if he couldn't convince the Hokage, a man who no doubt loved everyone in the village like they were his own, then Kakashi knew he would be pushed to take more drastic measures. It would end badly but he couldn’t help but feel that leaving such a powerful child alone without any guidance would likely end just as poorly. 

Kakashi was ready to start fighting for his case again when the Hokage lifted his head and gave Kakashi a smile. “Well, I have to say you have me sold! I can’t help but agree with you, isolating the boy would no doubt lead to disaster. But I want you to understand, this isn’t going to be easy. You’ll need to find someone to care for him while you’re on missions. I’m going to put you on mandatory leave when you bring the boy home, for at least three months. You’ll need the time, I’m sure of it.”

Relief filled Kakashi and he finally allowed himself to relax slightly. He gave the Hokage a deep bow before he spoke. “Thank you sir. But you said the council doesn’t agree with us. How are you going to handle them?” Kakashi would be forever grateful for the support of the Hokage but he didn’t want a bunch of old bastards breathing down his neck at every turn.

“You’ve brought up some very good points today Kakashi, and when the council hears the strike you’ve organized if they don’t comply I’m sure they’ll be swayed.” Kakashi paused, trying to remember what strike the old man was talking about he couldn’t come up with anything.

“Sir?”

“It’s a brilliant idea Kakashi, I can’t help but admire the dedication you and the rest of our ninja have for the village. A strike of all high level ninja that you’ve organized should you not be allowed to adopt Naruto is quite a grand gesture. We can’t risk losing our elite all over a singular child, even if he does hold the nine-tail fox. I’m sure the council will see the concern that these ninja have over the care of such a powerful young boy.” The Hokage had the audacity to wink at Kakashi. 

Kakashi had no other option but to go along with it. “Yes sir. The ninja of this village want to ensure that Naruto is loyal. There is no better way to do that than to give him a family here, especially one that is already quite powerful and strong enough to protect everyone involved.”

“I’m glad we could talk about this before you and your colleagues went on strike. We’ve managed to avoid a full blown crisis!” He pretended to wipe his brow, then started pulling out paperwork. Kakashi could make out the adoption papers from where he was standing. 

“Yes sir, I thought it would be best to try and work out an agreement before things got out of hand.” By the time he was finished speaking the Hokage had finished writing everything up and motioned for him to sign on a few different lines. After quickly reading everything over Kakashi did so, almost not registering what those few pen strokes would mean. It all felt so sudden and surreal. 

The Hokage clapped his hands together, looking absolutely delighted. “Then it’s settled! I’ll inform the council of what we’ve discussed and I’ll send you a message when you can go pick up the boy. I would suggest having a room ready for him.” 

“Of course sir.” Kakashi gave the man another deep bow, knowing that if he wasn’t on Kakashi’s side Naruto would have stayed in the orphanage. Instead Kakashi had been given an unofficial mission. Get everything ready for the four year old to finally come home. 

Kakashi left the office feeling both accomplished and more apprehensive than ever before. It was beginning to sink in and not even his first S-ranked mission could compare to the thought of inviting a child into his life. That apprehension, however, was vastly overshadowed by one detail. He would be taking care of his sensei's boy. Finally, he felt the overwhelming sadness that had plagued him for years begin to lift. This would actually make a difference, this would make things even a little better, this would begin to make things right. Naruto would grow up being loved and would never know anything else. Kakashi would guarantee it. 

\---------------

Kakashi looked up at the building, then double checked the address he had been given. This was the orphanage? The building was falling apart, the plastered cracking and breaking off in small chunks, paint on the doors and window sills peeling up to reveal mildewed wood underneath. He took the steps carefully and winced when the wooden boards groaned loudly under foot. 

The inside of the building was slightly better but also much worse. It looked like a proper institution and not a place that housed children. The furniture in the lobby was likely decades old, the lights above were too bright and disorienting. The floors were covered with linoleum that was stained and warped in places but Kakashi was happy to see nothing was actively falling apart like the exterior. 

He made his way up to the reception desk, waiting for the woman to notice his arrival. When she made no move to look up from her magazine, Kakashi rang the bell on her desk. She looked up at him with a glare. 

"What do you want?" Her tone was sharp and Kakashi would have recoiled if not for his years of training. 

"I'm here to pick up Naruto Uzumaki." Kakashi was once again surprised when her face turned pinched.

"Oh good, we're finally getting rid of that demon brat. He was supposed to be moved into the apartments a few days ago but I suppose you're the reason he wasn’t. Thanks for that, had to put up with that monster for longer because of you." Without another glance she walked back into the compound, leaving Kakashi to gape at her back. She disappeared for a moment, there was some shouting and before Kakashi could get his bearings she returned to the reception desk and her magazine. 

Without looking up she addressed the very confused man. "Someone will bring him out soon, wait by the door." Kakashi did as she asked, still reeling from her attitude. 

And in no time at all someone came storming out, dragging a child by the collar. They stopped in front of Kakashi. 

The boy was smaller than Kakashi had expected. He knew that children were small, but Naruto was tiny to the point that Kakashi feared a strong breeze would whisk the boy away. His hair was ratty, greasy, yet somehow cowlicks stuck straight up in a chaotic mess of bright blonde. When Kakashi looked away from the boy’s head to take in the rest of his appearance he was dismayed to find that his clothes were stained and ill-fitting. The older man had known they would eventually tackle a shopping trip but he had hoped it would be able to wait a few days. Looking at Naruto in that minute, Kakashi realized it had all been wishful thinking.

“Is this all he has?” The boy was practically dwarfed by the caretaker and while the bag seemed massive in such tiny arms, it couldn’t have held more than a few sets of clothes. 

“He hasn’t needed more,” the woman responded, turning her nose up in obvious disgust, pulling her hand away from the boy as if he were contaminated. Kakashi didn’t think it was possible but the child shrank even more into himself. 

“He’s four, of course he needs more than this. Does he have any toys? Any comfort items? A special blanket or something?” Kakashi was desperate at this point. They couldn’t have been so cruel to Naruto. It just wasn’t possible. Not such a small child, not when he was light enough to be picked up and thrown. Kakashi had known that many held a grudge against him but this was… this was just too awful to be real. 

“No, he doesn’t. Mr. Hatake, could you please remove this child from the building, he’s upsetting the other children.” Kakashi had never felt such anger so quickly. It was obvious the boy was scared. He couldn’t understand other people’s hatred, no four year old would understand such a strong emotion from people he had never met.

Kakashi gave her a seething glare that she had the nerve to return before Kakashi kneeled down in front of Naruto. The little boy didn’t move other than to fidget where he stood. Kakashi took a quiet deep breath to calm his nerves, then smiled at the boy. “Hello, Naruto. My name is Kakashi and I’m going to be taking you home today. Do you understand what that means?”

The little boy shook his head slightly and Kakashi could feel his heart break just a little. He tried his best to continue in an even voice. “It means you’re going to be part of my family.” With that, Kakashi held out his hand for the boy to take. Naruto startled, his eyes peeking up at Kakashi through shaggy, thick blonde hair. Kakashi was nearly started by just how blue those eyes were but kept his features steady and calm. The boy looked so much like his sensei… 

A tiny hand gently grasped onto his and Kakashi stood to leave, holding Naruto’s hand as they walked out. They were barely out onto the steps when Kakashi felt small shivers coming from Naruto. He turned and just caught a glimpse of Naruto’s hand wiping tears away. 

“Naruto? What’s wrong?” Kakashi once again found himself kneeling down to be face to face with the boy. He had a feeling it was a position he was going to get used to.

“This… this isn’t a joke is it? If it is, please stop.” Naruto’s voice trembled but he still hadn’t let go of Kakashi’s hand. Fresh tears spilt down his face and Naruto rushed to wipe them away.

Kakashi was dumbfounded. Joke? Who would joke about something like adopting a child? Oh, that’s right, the same cruel people who told him that Naruto only needed a small bag of clothes and nothing else. 

Gently and slowly so as to not scare the child, Kakashi lifted his hand to help wipe away Naruto’s tears. The boy’s breath hitched at this but his crying slowed to a stop. “Naruto, I would never do that. I promise you, you are my family now. I went directly to the Hokage about this, the leader of the village himself knows and gave me permission. And now that you’re my family I’m going to protect you like you’re my son. Understand? This isn’t a joke and I’ll fight anyone that tries to say it is.” By the end of his speech Naruto was crying again and Kakashi had a feeling it would be a very long walk home if they continued this way. 

“Naruto, would it be alright if I picked you up? I want to get us home so I can show you your new room.” The crying continued but the boy nodded so Kakashi picked him up, noting that the boy was lighter than he expected. He was beginning to think that, upon a doctor's visit, Kakashi would find that the boy was severely underweight. That was for a later time though. For now, all Kakashi wanted was to get Naruto home and away from the orphanage.

\---------------

They arrived soon enough and Kakashi was relieved to open the door and start the process of getting Naruto comfortable. It was obvious by the way the people they passed behaved that they not only knew Naruto but resented the boy. Naruto, luckily, kept his head pressed into Kakashi’s shoulder and didn’t see the looks people were giving them.

When they stepped inside and the door was closed behind them Kakashi set Naruto down and got ready to give him a tour. 

“Welcome home, Naruto.” The boy looked around, obviously skeptical of the rather bland apartment. There wasn’t much to see in the entrance way. The living room was in view but it was equally boring, with only a couch, rug, and small bookshelf. Kakashi had since moved any ‘sensitive’ books into his room. He led the boy further into the apartment, pointing out the kitchen, making sure to tell Naruto that he was not only welcomed but encouraged to eat any food from the fridge or pantry that he wanted. Through the living room was a hallway that led to the rest of the apartment. Kakashi pointed to the end of the hall where his bedroom was and made sure to establish where the bathroom was before leading Naruto to his new room. 

On the plain white door were some bubbly letters tacked on with pins that spelled out the little boy's name. Each letter was a different bright color and covered in glitter that would gently fall to the floor each time the door was opened or closed. Even Kakashi would admit it was a little tacky, but Naruto stared up at the door with a reverence that was unmatched. 

“This is really mine?”

“That’s just the start of it. Why don’t we go inside?” Kakashi pushed open the door to reveal the furnished bedroom. It was still rather bland but the older man knew just by the look on Naruto’s face that this was likely the first time he got a room to himself.

It had taken the Hokage three days to finally deliver the message that Naruto was ready to be picked up. In those three days Kakashi had been working non-stop to get everything prepared. The second bedroom had been emptied of weapons, scrolls, and dust bunnies, then filled with new furniture that Kakashi spent longer than he would care to admit building. There was a clean bed with little cartoon dogs printed on the sheets, a dresser for Naruto’s clothes, a desk with some blanks scrolls, paper and colored pencils for the kid to draw with, and even a colorful cubby at the foot of the bed, just ready to be filled with toys and stuffed animals.

“I know it’s kind of boring right now but you can’t blame an old ninja for not knowing what’s in fashion these days. We’ll go out shopping sometime soon to pick you up more clothes and decorations, maybe a fun rug and some posters.” Naruto nodded but didn’t seem to be listening. Instead he was taking careful steps around the room, touching each item like it was made of glass. His bag had been dropped in the middle of the floor, the boy obviously not caring about the items he brought with him. Kakashi let him explore for a few minutes before remembering one last thing he had bought but hadn’t put in the room. He wanted it to be a surprise for Naruto, a sort of welcome home present. 

“Naruto, I got you one last thing. I’m going to go grab it, I’ll be right back.” 

Kakashi desperately wanted to run to get the present, but he also knew he should give the kid a little time to let everything sink in. He took deliberately slow steps, holding himself back from darting between the rooms. It took him a few minutes to dig the item out of a chest in his room and by the time he got back he found Naruto staring down at the pack of colored pencils on his desk. 

The little boy looked up, eyes wide. “These are mine?” 

“They are. Everything in this room is yours.” That got Kakashi a tiny nod. Finally Kakashi held out the present he had been holding behind his back. “Everything in this room is yours, including this.” It was a stuffed dog plush, with large embroidered eyes and a soft fake fur coat. It’s tail was curved in a perpetual wag, a smile sewn onto its muzzle along with a few teeth peeking out from underneath. 

Kakashi was expecting Naruto to reach out and grab it like any other kid might but that theory was blown when Naruto instead gently reached out and gave the stuffed toy a few light pats. The older man had never seen a person’s eyes grow that wide and yet Naruto proved just how amazed someone could be with a gift. It was at that moment that Kakashi knew that Naruto could ask for the moon and Kakashi would find a way to deliver. The boy would never want for anything in the world, not if Kakashi was still breathing. 

“Here, take it. It’s yours.” Naruto took the toy and cradled it in his arms, quickly going from in awe to a blubbering mess. Kakashi felt clueless, not sure how to handle a crying child but he couldn’t help but feel better knowing that anything he did would be better than how Naruto was treated. 

He ended up kneeling down again, holding the boy in his arms while he cried. Kakashi couldn’t say for certain how he ended up hugging the child. The only thing he was sure of was that this was his first hug in many years. In fact, he couldn’t remember getting a hug since before the attack of the nine-tail fox. 

Kakashi looked down onto the head of bright blonde hair. Naruto was clutching onto Kakashi’s side like his life depended on it with one arm, the other still keeping a firm hold on his new stuffed animal. Both of their shirts were slowly going from might need washed territory to might need destroyed territory with all of the snot and tears they were collecting. Not of this mattered though. Today was the first day of Naruto’s new life and Kakashi would always treasure the memory of being able to give Naruto his very first toy.

\---------------

In comparison the rest of the day was rather uneventful. They hung out in Naruto’s room for a while after the boy stopped crying, sitting on the bed and talking about different ways they could decorate. Kakashi, during their discussion, made a mental list of things to get and was only slightly deterred by the idea of painting the entire room orange. Then again, when Naruto beamed at the idea of being allowed to paint the room his favorite color Kakashi knew he couldn’t say no. 

After their brain storming they had dinner consisting of stir fried shrimp and sautéed vegetables, both of which Naruto ate with alarming speed. When Kakashi told him to slow down Naruto lowered his eyes and apologized before taking careful bites. Kakashi was then left to blubber on about how Naruto wasn’t in trouble, the older man just didn’t want him to choke on his food. Dinner was finished in relative, but awkward, silence and once they were done Kakashi was left a bit clueless. What was he supposed to do with Naruto now? He didn’t have much experience to fall back on when it came to kids, what did you do with them during the day or during free time? Luckily Naruto answered his questions for him.

“Kashi?” Kakashi inwardly winced at the nickname but looked down at the boy who was standing in front of him. 

“Yes, Naruto?”

“You’re a ninja right?” Naruto pointed at his uniform as if to prove his point. 

Kakashi nodded. “I am.”

Naruto shifted from foot to foot, clearly not knowing how to word his next sentence. Then, with a sudden burst of determination the little boy blurted it out. “Do you think you could teach me about being a ninja? I just started going to the academy but it’s kind of hard.”

Kakashi sighed with relief. This was something he could handle. “Oh, ok. Sure. What do you need help on?” Naruto ran to his bedroom and came back with his bag. He pulled out a textbook and notebook before plopping back down in his chair. 

“We’re learning about vocabulary but I don’t really understand it. Why do we even need to know vocabulary to be a ninja?” Naruto’s eyebrows scrunched together and he turned to glare at the books like they had offended him. 

“Well, it’s good to know the basics with everything you do, including being a ninja. Show me what you’re learning right now.” Kakashi pulled his chair over. Naruto paused, glancing between the textbook and notebook as if they would jump up and just give him the answers. Hesitantly he reached for the textbook and flipped it open to the first page, then looked up at Kakashi expentalty. 

“Naruto… this is the title page.” Naruto looked at the book, then back up at Kakashi and nodded. 

Kakashi elaborated. “This isn’t vocabulary terms.”

“Oh.” Naruto turned a few more pages then gazed back up at Kakashi again.

“That’s the introduction. Naruto, let me ask you this and try not to get upset. Do you know how to read?” Naruto suddenly found the tile in the dining room very interesting. 

“I try but the shapes are weird. I don’t get how people can just,” Naruto waved his hand over the page, “get words from them.” 

“That’s called reading Naruto. And I’m beginning to think that you’re struggling with it because you never learned how.” Naruto looked up at him, his eyebrows furrowed in obvious confusion.

“You’re supposed to learn how to read? I thought people just did it and that I couldn’t for some reason.” Kakashi had the urge to bang his head against the table. No, what he really wanted to do was bang Naruto’s previous ‘caretakers’ heads against the table. They had just sent a child to the academy without teaching him how to read and expected what? For the boy to magically do well? Kakashi's thoughts began to spiral as he thought about how this boy was treated. Could the villagers really be so cruel to a child? Naruto hadn't done anything wrong, Kakashi had been told he was a bit of a prankster but that didn't excuse such blatant neglect. 

Kakashi shook himself from his thoughts to look down at Naruto. The boy stared back with those big blue eyes of his and Kakashi knew exactly how they would be spending the rest of the night. 

"Naruto, I'm going to teach you how to read." Kakashi watched Naruto light up instantly.

"Really?" The boy was practically vibrating with excitement at the prospect of learning a new skill. 

"Yes. Let's open your notebook and get started." The rest of the night was spent learning the alphabet. Naruto, for all his bubbling energy, was a fast study. They were slowed down, however, whenever Naruto got distracted. Which, according to Kakashi, was every two minutes. The boy was curious, asking questions about everything and the more Kakashi answered the faster the questions came and the more difficult they got. 

By the end of the night both were exhausted but feeling accomplished. Naruto had memorized his letters and was well on the way to being able to sound out words. When he started to yawn Kakashi declared it a successful night and that it was time for bed. This reminded Naruto that he had his very own room and the boy suddenly had another burst of energy. He grabbed his backpack and books and ran off before Kakashi could blink. The man followed behind and entered the room just as Naruto dumped everything from his backpack onto the floor. 

Kakashi chuckled. “Redecorating already?”

“Needed to find my sleep clothes!” Naruto replied, not bothering to look up from where he was digging through the newly made pile.

“How about we put everything away now so we don’t have to do it tomorrow?” Naruto tilted his head a bit in confusion and Kakashi was reminded of his nin-dogs. When it became apparent that Naruto didn’t understand what it meant to put things away Kakashi led him through the steps, teaching Naruto how to fold his clothes and put them in the dresser properly. While they did this Kakashi found himself filling the silence by reassuring Naruto that tomorrow they would go clothes shopping to get everything he could possibly need, and then some. Naruto nodded at the appropriate times but slowly began to withdraw the more Kakashi spoke. It only took a few minutes but Naruto went from bubbly and happy to reserved and almost scared. When Kakashi watched Naruto lower his head after the clothes were put away his need to understand got the better of him.

Kakashi knelt down so he and Naruto could be eye to eye while they spoke. “Naruto, can you tell me what’s wrong?”

“You don’t have to get me anything. I don’t want to be a burden.” That word coming from Naruto almost stung. It was another reminder about how poorly he had been treated. 

“Naruto, you’re not a burden.” The older man tried his best to comfort the small boy by placing a hand on his shoulder, but it didn’t feel like nearly enough.

Naruto grew more agitated, shaking his head and crossing his arms over his stomach. “I am though. The ladies always said so. That I was a burden to the village and I know that’s bad. I don’t want to be bad.”

Of all the things Naruto could have said, this wasn’t what Kakashi was expecting. It broke his heart to think that Naruto thought so little of himself. “Oh, Naruto. You’re not a burden. You’re a child. A child is meant to be taken care of. It’s not a burden to take care of a child and if someone sees it that way then they shouldn’t be taking care of children. Do you understand?”

“Sort of.” Kakashi did the only thing he could think to do and held out his arms. Naruto, after some hesitation and a moment's consideration, stepped forward into the embrace. Once Naruto was in his arms, Kakashi gently picked the boy up before he sat down on the bed with Naruto in his lap, cradling the boy close.

They sat in the silence for a moment, both seeking comfort. It was a few minutes later when Kakashi spoke once again. “What I mean to say is this. You are important to me. I know you haven’t known me for very long but I’ve been trying to adopt you for a while.”

“Why? Why would you want to adopt me?” Naruto whispered in Kakashi’s shirt.

It was a question Kakashi knew he would have to answer but he thought he would have more time. According to law Kakashi wasn’t allowed to give the answer he wanted but he certainly wasn’t going to leave Naruto in the dark. “Well… I knew your parents.”

Blue eyes met a singular gray eye. “Really? You… you knew them?”

Kakashi nodded. “Yes, I did.”

“Can you tell me about them?” This had Kakashi stumped. He knew names were well out of the question but if he kept his descriptions general and based on personality rather than physical defining traits...

“Your father was very strong and very fast. He was smart and clever but also extremely kind. He took care of me after some very hard times. And your mother was fierce. She was probably one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. And I know they both cared about you very, very much.” Kakashi looked down at the top of a bright blonde head and let out a sigh. He could feel tears falling onto his shirt but what concerned him more were the tears that spilled from Obito’s eye. He couldn’t help but be grateful that it was covered and Naruto couldn’t see them. He didn’t want to worry the boy.

It didn't take long for the tears to stop, after all, it had been a long day. Kakashi carefully nudged Naruto off of his lap before gathering his sleep clothes and helping him change, despite a few protests. Kakashi had done something similar for injured comrades on missions but this situation was a stark difference from what he was used to. The clothes were much smaller and Naruto felt it necessary to struggle every step of the way. If this were being done on a mission the other person was usually unconscious. To hear loud complaints and dodge tiny feet was surreal. After taking about double the time it should have, Naruto was finally in his sleep clothes, including a sleeping cap that was too big for his head. The boy insisted that it helped him sleep so Kakashi wasn’t going to argue, no matter how ridiculous he thought Naruto looked. As he was helping tuck the boy in Naruto turned to look up at him, giving him an unidentifiable look, his eyebrows scrunched up, his eyes squinted, and his mouth in a hard line. Kakashi stopped adjusting the blankets to kneel down beside the boy, waiting for him to say what was on his mind. 

After Naruto had scrutinized Kakashi and found what he wanted he finally spoke. “You’re really adopting me, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am.” Kakashi hoped the smile translated through his mask.

“I’m not going back?” He knew Naruto was asking for reassurance and Kakashi happily provided him with it.

“Never.” Not if Kakashi was still breathing but he decided that was a bit too intense to voice to a four year old.

Naruto was silent for a minute and didn’t meet Kakashi’s eyes when he asked his next question. “You’re a ninja… what if something happens? Will I go back then?”

“I actually have a plan in place for that. There is a man who I trust very much. He’s a bit odd but he’s kind. When you’re more comfortable here I would like you to meet him. If you like him then I’ll ask him to take care of you if something happens to me. I’ll also talk to a few more of my friends, just in case. Whatever happens in the future, you will never be alone again.” Naruto responded with some sniffles and nods but this time there were no water works. Kakashi couldn’t help but be thankful for that.

“Kashi?” Something in Naruto’s eyes spoke of determination. He met Kakashi’s gaze with confidence that no four year old should have.

“Yes?” 

“I’m gonna be the best kid you could ever have, believe it.” Obito’s eye was crying again and this time Kakashi could feel his eye reacting too. He took Naruto’s hand and gave it a squeeze, trying to not break down in front of the little boy. 

“Naruto, I’ve got a secret to tell you.” Kakashi took a breath, his voice thick with emotion. “You already are the best kid I could ever have.” Naruto let a few tears slip but gave Kakashi a huge smile in return. 

After everything that had happened the exhaustion that suddenly hit Kakashi with full force shouldn’t have surprised him. He made a quick exit plan and made a show of standing up and cracking his back. The loud pops making Naruto giggle. “Well, looks like you’re all snug in there. Better get to sleep soon, we have a full day tomorrow. Goodnight, Naruto.”

“Night Kashi.” Before Kakashi even turned off the light Naruto’s eyes were drifting closed.

\---------------

The shopping trip that Kakashi had sworn would be easy quickly turned into a nightmare. The part that surprised him the most was that it wasn’t Naruto who was causing problems. Oh no, the boy was subdued to the point of it being disturbing. He had already shown that he was no less than a ball of energy when he was at home and yet the second they were in public his head went down and he got quiet. That hadn’t worried Kakashi too much until they entered the first store. It was a rather large clothing store that Kakashi knew also sold children’s clothes. They had only been inside for a few minutes before they were approached by an employee. 

“Sir, I’m sorry but you’re going to have to leave.” Kakashi had been asked to leave stores before, but usually because they thought he was loitering. Now, when he was actually shopping, it made no sense.

“Why?”

“I’m sorry, let me be more specific. You don’t have to leave but that thing does.” Kakashi felt like he had been slapped across the face.

“Excuse me?”

“We don’t sell clothes to the beast, that thing is not allowed in here.” The word beast was sneered and the man turned his nose up at Naruto in disgust. 

“He’s not a beast, he’s a little boy.” Kakashi’s voice was calm but anyone with a brain would have noticed the sudden drop in temperature and dark aura. The man in front of them apparently was missing his brain as he didn’t even blink an eye at Kakashi. 

“We’ll have to agree to disagree. Now, I’ll say it again, either it leaves or you both do.” Kakashi grabbed Naruto’s hand and walked away, despite every cell in his body telling him to commit murder. If he was slightly less dedicated to the village he would have thought more about killing that man in broad daylight then running away to be a missing nin with Naruto in tow. As it was he settled on clearing the street of all other people with his intent to kill. 

Kakashi hadn’t thought it was possible, but their experiences only got worse from there. The furniture and décor store they tried to go into didn’t even let them in the door and it seemed that once word was out most of the stores had someone waiting by the entrances to turn them away. By now his intent to kill had cleared all but the stupidest of people, meaning only those who were hateful enough to keep little boys out of their shops just because they were different remained. 

“It’s ok, Kashi. I don’t mind the clothes I have.” Naruto fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, watching Kakashi with care. Kakashi, however, was too mad to notice the boy’s nervousness. He kept a tight grip on Naruto’s hand as he stormed down the street, too mad to even see if there were people in his way. If they were smart they wouldn’t be.

“Naruto, you have one pair of pants and two shirts. That’s not nearly enough for a kid. I don’t even remember being a kid but I know I had more clothes than that,” Kakashi snapped.

Naruto sniffled slightly but tried again to appease the man. “It’s fine, really.”

“It’s not!” Kakashi heard the first choked off cries and quietly cursed before walking off of the street so he could better comfort Naruto. He pulled them over to a quiet area and the moment they stopped moving Naruto immediately covered his face with his hands, tears falling between small fingers. Kakashi reached out to try and comfort the boy but stopped before he could touch him. He was afraid of making things worse and felt the anxiety of dealing with such a strange situation begin to build.

“I’m sorry, I’m not mad at you.” The boy's cries picked up and with them, Kakashi’s panic increased. 

Kakashi became frantic, his arms hovering close to the boy but still not touching him. “It’s ok Naruto, really. I’m not mad, I’m sorry.” Naruto went from crying to sobbing. Kakashi, out of desperation, was about to teleport them both back to his apartment when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“You boys ok?” Both Kakashi and Naruto looked up into the eyes of an older man. He was wearing a while chef’s coat and matching hat. A quick glance told Kakashi that they were having their melt down right outside a ramen stand.

Kakashi didn’t know how to reply so he answered honestly. “I don’t know.” The man started to laugh but Kakashi quickly realized it wasn’t unkind. His face was bright, smile lines accentuated with mirth. 

“I can’t tell you how many times my little girl made a scene in public when she was your boy’s age. Sometimes just going out is enough to overwhelm kids. Now, it’s about lunch time. How about you both come in and have some ramen?”

At this Kakashi stood up, standing between Naruto and the stranger. After everything he had experienced today he was on edge. Someone suddenly showing them kindness was suspicious at best and a planned attack at worst. 

“If you’re trying something because of who he is then you had better stop now. I’m in no mood to be toyed with.” The icy tone would be enough to scare away a lesser man but apparently this ramen stand owner was made of steel.

The man blinked at Kakashi’s sudden mood swing then nodded. His eyes met Kakashi’s and the other man gave him a small, sad smile. “I can only imagine what you’ve been through today. I’m sorry you both had to experience that. Some people can’t look past their hate to see the truth. I don’t think the boy’s anything more than that, a little boy. I know this probably won’t do much to comfort you but how about you both come in for some food. On the house.” 

Naruto had finally calmed down enough to be listening and seemed to pick up on the most mundane detail, in Kakashi’s opinion. He grabbed Kakashi’s pant leg and gave it a small tug to get his attention. 

“Kashi? What’s ramen? Can… can we try it?” Kakashi sighed, feeling he had lost a battle of wills that he didn’t even know he had started, and motioned for the man to return to his restaurant before picking Naruto up and carrying him inside, gently setting him down on a stool at the bar. The rest of the restaurant was blessedly empty. 

Naruto looked around curiously while they waited and his eyes went wide when a large bowl of noodles, toppings and broth was set in front of him moments later. The older man smiled at them and gave them a nod. “You two deserve a break after all that drama, enjoy!” 

After a bit of instruction from Kakashi on how to attack such a food, Naruto dug in. Naruto took a cautious bite, then another, then Kakashi watched as the ramen disappeared in seconds. Kakashi ate his own at impossible speeds, careful so that nobody could see him with his mask down.

“That was really good!” Naruto beamed up at Kakashi, his bowl completely empty.

“I’m glad you liked it!” The old man was back, carrying a piece of paper that he handed over to Kakashi. 

“Thought I would have more time to work on that but it’s a start.” Kakashi looked down at the paper, saw a list of addresses, then looked back up at the man expectantly. “It’s a list of different shops around town. I know most of the owners personally and they’re good people. They shouldn’t have too many problems with you two shopping there and if they do have a problem they’ll keep their mouths shut. 

Kakashi had been ready to condemn the entire village but, staring down at the piece of paper, he reminded himself that the worst of the bunch were always the most visible. It took effort to find the good people. Or, in their case, it took a melt down in the right place at the right time. “I… thank you. That’s very kind of you.” 

The restaurant owner waved his hand. “Don’t mention it. Just promise to come back sometime soon to tell me how the rest of your shopping goes!”

“Really, thank you again, um…” Kakashi paused to give the man a chance to introduce himself.

“Teuchi .” The man gave him a grin which Kakashi returned, using his one visible eye to show his smile.

“Kakashi. And this is Naruto Uzumaki.” Kakashi put a hand on Naruto’s shoulder.

Naruto gave Teuchi a smile that was so bright it rivaled the sun. “Thanks for the ramen! It was really good!”

“I’m happy you liked it Naruto! Make sure to ask your dad to bring you back here some time!” The word dad made Kakashi’s stomach flip so he decided a quick retreat was in order.

“I think it’s time for us to go give these shops a try. Goodbye, and thank you again. I appreciate your help.” Kakashi gave the man the most sincere look he could with three fourths of his face covered, then lifted Naruto up after asking permission. The boy waved goodbye as they walked out.

“We’ll be back!” Naruto replied. Kakashi felt impending doom at Naruto’s enthusiasm. He had a feeling it was going to become a challenge to convince the boy to eat anything else. 

With more waving and their last goodbyes the two set off once again and this time they were much more successful. Naruto went back to being quiet but the ramen seemed to help his mood because he looked around the shop curiously rather than keeping his head down. When an employee approached them Kakashi prepared himself for the worst, only for the woman to ask if they needed help. Kakashi explained that he had just adopted Naruto. The woman jumped to his aid and before he could blink his arms were full of clothes in Naruto’s size and the woman had whisked Naruto off to show him t-shirts with different designs on them. Every time Naruto said he liked a shirt it was added to the pile in Kakashi’s arms. While he felt the need to complain about being treated like a work horse he kept quiet. The woman was smiling down at Naruto as he told her all about his new room and how Kakashi was teaching him how to read. It was good for him to be able to interact with people who didn’t treat him like a monster and Kakashi wasn’t about to interrupt. By the time the store clerk and Naruto had finished shopping Kakashi could barely see over the mound of clothes in his arms. When he dumped it all on the checkout counter Naruto finally realized just how much they were about to buy. He tugged gently on Kakashi’s shirt.

“Kashi, we don’t have to get all of this, it’s ok.” 

Kakashi kneeled down to speak with Naruto. “What if I want to get all of this for you?”

“You don’t have to.” Naruto kept his head down but hadn’t let go of Kakashi’s shirt.

“But I want to. I want you to have nice things.” The woman who was helping them check out gave a breathy sigh and looked at Kakashi like he had hung the moon. Naruto nodded but that little furrow of his eyebrows never quite went away. 

The next store went similarly. Naruto got caught up in the excitement of shopping and talking to someone who was kind to him, then when it came time to check out he got worried. Kakashi knew it would take time to convince Naruto that he deserved nice things, but he was happy to take the time to convince the boy. 

They had gone to three more stores by the time they called it quits. Kakashi’s arms were now loaded with bags of clothes, decorations, and toys. The toy shop had been a particular challenge because Naruto kept trying to convince Kakashi that he didn’t need anything. His eyes betrayed him, however, as he would glance over to whatever toys he truly wanted. Kakashi had bought him everything he looked at for longer than a second just because he could. Naruto fought him on it for a while but eventually conceded. Kakashi wasn’t foolish enough to think that he was the more stubborn of the two but he was glad Naruto gave up the fight early. It didn’t go past Kakashi’s notice that Naruto was eyeing the bag that held the new stuffed animals. When they got home Kakashi decided he would let Naruto play for a while before they put everything away. Kakashi was slowly coming to realize that sometimes it was important to work on being happy first. He had a sneaking suspicion that his sensei would be laughing at him for having taken so long to figure that out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try my best to keep canon aspects while still keeping my changes realistic.
> 
> Also, I work an odd schedule that changes weekly so I will be very slow to update. I'll try my best to update when I can but I cannot guarantee scheduled updates. Tags will likely change as the story does but the rating will stay the same!
> 
> One last note, the age to enter the academy is a plot hole in the series that I'm taking full advantage of. Naruto and the rest of the kids will be entering the academy at the age of 4-5 in this fic.


	2. Monstrous Change

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit shorter than the last. It's a bit bittersweet in some sections but I think that's kind of the general mood of most of my longer stories.

Monday morning found Kakashi running across the village at top speed, looking in every corner, every nook and cranny, trying desperately to find Naruto. Because somehow, between the previous evening and that morning, he had lost him. He had lost Naruto. He had only had the kid for a few days and he already lost him. 

It wasn’t like Kakashi didn’t have a solid excuse. The kid was running him ragged. And because he was being run ragged he had slept until ten AM. And apparently Naruto took that as an incentive to just take off without so much as a warning. Which led to Kakashi darting into every store he passed, every alleyway he spotted, peeking behind every dumpster in hopes of finding his kid. In his panic, it didn’t occur to Kakashi until he passed a playground that he should be checking the places where kids might be during the day. Quickly enough he found himself at the academy and, after looking through three different windows, he finally found Naruto’s class. The boy was sitting in the middle of the room, fast asleep with a line of drool dripping onto his paper. Kakashi let out a relieved sigh and decided that, after a talk about telling Kakashi in advance about travel plans, he would explain that the best way to learn was to stay awake. 

An irritated huff from behind interpreted Kakashi’s thoughts. “You know, if you keep staring into that window people are going to think you’re a creep.” 

Kakashi turned and was met with the displeased face of Yoshino Nara. Before the woman had become a mother and settled down she was known by all as the Monster of the Mission Room. Late reports were not tolerated and sloppy handwriting was treated like the enemy. Kakashi vividly remembered being scolded for turning in reports covered in mud or crumpled beyond recognition. It was bizarre to see her in civilian clothing, although her stance brought back memories. She was tapping her foot and had a hand placed firmly on her hip. 

Immediately Kakashi stepped away from the window, his hands in the air. “No creeping, I assure you. Just checking in on Naruto.” 

Her arms crossed in front of her chest, and her eyes narrowed. “Naruto? Why are you checking in on him? I would think if the Hokage sent a man over to check on the boy he would be a little more subtle. Or maybe you’re just losing your edge.” Kakashi winced. Suddenly he respected Shikaku much more. This woman knew just where to hit. Then again, it seemed a bit odd that she was so defensive. Kakashi noted her stern expression, the way she was leaning towards the class in an almost protective manner. If he didn’t know better he would think she was trying to defend the boy.

“The Hokage didn’t send me. I adopted him recently and I sort of… forgot he went to the academy. So he gave me a bit of a scare this morning. We’ll be working on our communication.” Kakashi gave her his best attempt at a smile, with his one visible eye curving and squinting shut. It didn’t have much of an effect but she did relax slightly at his words.

“You adopted him?” Her hands fell to her sides and her face softened just a touch. 

Kakashi shrugged. “Yeah. It didn’t seem right for him to live alone.”

She looked him up and down, giving him the distinct impression he was being tested. When she finally gave a singular nod Kakashi let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding.

“Good. Someone needs to look after that boy. I’ve been trying my best but there’s only so much I can do.” She turned her gaze to the classroom, where she saw Naruto fast asleep. Yoshino sighed and shook her head before continuing. “You’ll need to step up if you want to do this right, Hatake. Naruto is a troublemaker, people will expect you to whip him into shape.” It felt like a blow to the stomach and immediately Kakashi tried to defend himself.

“I know. I’m trying my best. It’s only been a few days and we’ve already come pretty far. I’ve started to teach him how to read and he’s learning to put his clothes away after we wash them.” Yoshino looked entirely unimpressed. Kakashi felt the need to scramble to prove to her that he could handle this, he could take care of Naruto. He was about to start speaking again when she held up her hand.

“I understand, there’s no need to go on. I’ll make you a deal, in fact. I’ll give you the rundown on how to raise a child if you start sending Naruto to school with his own lunches.” Kakashi was grateful for the mask at that moment because it helped hide the fact that his jaw was hanging open.

“... what?”

Yoshino rolled her eyes at him, as if he was being difficult by not following this sudden change in topic. “I’ve been making a second lunch for Shikamaru to give to Naruto for a week now. It’s kind of annoying. The kid has a bottomless stomach and would eat us out of house and home if it continued.”

Kakashi completely understood that but couldn’t help but still be confused. He soldiered through to give her a response. “Oh. That’s all?” It didn’t seem like a fair trade. After all, Yoshino had basically offered to give Kakashi a chunk of her free time, which Kakashi was quickly learning to be extremely valuable, in exchange for feeding Naruto, something that Kakashi was already doing. He wondered what she was getting out of it but also knew better than to ask the Monster of the Mission Room. He also didn’t want to exclude the possibility that she genuinely might want to help, even though previous experiences told him that this wasn’t a common occurrence when it came to Naruto. 

“That’s all. In fact, I meet with some of the other parents every Tuesday morning after we drop off the kids. Gives us time to share tips and gossip. You’re welcome to join us.” Her offer was kind but the mention of being a parent made Kakashi feel unbalanced. It was still hard to consider himself a parent, even though he knew that’s what he was. He hoped the insecurity didn’t show on what could be seen of his face but Yoshino’s eyes narrowed. He jumped back into conversation in hopes of distracting her.

“I just might take you up on that. So, did you pack a lunch for Naruto today?” Kakashi took a few steps away from Yoshino and the school as he spoke.

“I did, but you had better go get him one yourself. I’m sure he’ll be able to eat through both and still be too skinny for his own good.” It felt final so Kakashi turned away to leave as quickly as possible when a hand grabbed onto his arm. He turned back and came face to face with Yoshino. Her grip was as firm as steel and Kakashi knew from experience that if she wanted to say something there was no escape until she had said her piece. 

When she finally met Kakashi’s gaze her face was sincere, none of the judgement or ridicule left. It had been replaced with a seriousness that rivaled the Hokage when he handed out S-ranked missions.

“Kakashi. I want you to listen to my next words very carefully. You take care of that boy like he’s your flesh and blood. I've been doing what I can but there's only so much one person can do indirectly. He needs you. He needs a father." Her words pushed Kakashi to an edge he hadn’t even known to exist. The cliff before him was too high, the ground not visible. For all the bravery Kakashi had, he was terrified to make that plunge. 

"I know. I… I'll do what I can for him." He hoped to pacify her but when she shook her head he knew it hadn’t worked.

"That's not enough. I need you to promise me you will be his father. That's what Naruto needs and he needs you to be confident in that role." The edge of the cliff crumbled around Kakashi yet his feet were frozen. Yoshino’s voice was encouraging his fall.

"I…"

"Promise me Kakashi. Promise me you'll be the boy's father." Kakashi took a breath, gave her a nod, and fell into the void below. 

"I promise." 

Kakashi had barely whispered it but Yoshino heard him and gave him a soft smile. 

"Good. And when it gets tough we'll leave the kids with Shikaku and go out to complain about things over a drink." With that, his world readjusted and he was on his feet again. He had taken the dive off the cliff but now knew he would never be alone. So many others had done the same before him and now they were there to help him through the dark. 

Kakashi grinned. "Sounds like a solid plan."

"It hasn't failed me yet.” Yoshino sent him an amused look then looked down at her watch and motioned towards the school. “You’d better get going, it’ll be lunch time soon."

“Right.” With a final wave goodbye, Kakashi took off towards home. He knew there were some leftovers from the night before and he had just enough time to put them into a bento box, along with an assortment of vegetables and some rice. It came together quickly enough and he was once again running to the school, this time with a bento box in hand. Kakashi peeked into the classroom once more, curious if Naruto had woken up. He had, but he also wasn’t paying attention to the lesson. Instead he was turned around in his seat, whispering to his classmates. Kakashi couldn’t tell what Naruto was saying, as his back was to him, but he could read the lips of the other kids.

“You’re lying!”

“That would never happen!”

“Nobody wants to adopt a weirdo like you!”

So Naruto was bragging about being adopted? Something about that warmed Kakashi’s heart and had him grinning. He was glad to hear that Naruto was enjoying living with him enough to brag about it and he couldn’t wait to see the face those brats made when they realized it was true. 

The window slid open easily enough, obviously nobody was expecting someone to sneak through it from the outside, and Kakashi hopped into the classroom. He did nothing to hide his entrance and the entire lesson was brought to a halt, all eyes turned to him. 

“Yo.” Kakashi waved to the group and a girl in the back, clearly a Hyuga with lavender eyes and dark hair, shyly waved back. Nobody else moved. 

“Um. Can I help you?” The teacher had clearly recognized Kakashi as the Copy Nin and was shifting around nervously. The TA, on the other hand, had a different opinion.

“Hey, you can’t just break into a classroom! We’re in the middle of a lesson!” Kakashi was suddenly reminded of Yoshino and her days in the mission room. The fear that shot down his spine was only muted by the fact that the TA was likely a newly graduated chunin. If he had been put in the classroom right away that said to Kakashi that he had a thick skin but wasn’t fit for long term, intense missions. In fact, he would even go so far to guess that the Hokage was planning to retire the current teacher and replace him with the TA. 

“Iruka, quiet!” The teacher’s scolding did little to the TA, as the young man was still glaring Kakashi down. Despite the glare, Iruka didn’t say anything more. The teacher turned back to Kakashi, his hands fluttering around at his sides. “I’m so sorry about Iruka, Mr. Hatake. He’s new to all of this, just became a chunin and is trying his hand at teaching. But um… he does have a point. We were rather busy…” The man shifted from side to side. When Kakashi didn’t move or reply the teacher started to sweat, nervous energy building in the air. Some of the students were beginning to pick up on this and become uncomfortable as well but others simply watched. One blonde haired girl was even taking notes. Finally after a full minute of silence the man broke down and spoke again, the words bursting from his mouth. “But that means this must be very important! How can we help you?”

“Oh, me? I’m just here to drop off lunch for my kid.” Kakashi didn’t look around too much as he walked over to Naruto and dropped the bento box on the table in front of him. Naruto beamed up at him, even as the class and teacher gasped. Iruka’s expression, surprisingly, turned thoughtful. 

Naruto took the box, snuck a look inside and grinned when he saw how the vegetables were cut. It had taken Kakashi a few minutes to figure out how to make a dog out of red pepper slices and pieces of dried seaweed but the look on Naruto’s face alone was worth all the effort. “Thanks Kashi! You’re the best!” 

“Sorry I forgot about it this morning, Naruto. Won’t happen again.” Kakashi ruffed Naruto’s hair, causing the boy to let out a rather loud laugh. A pink haired girl in the front of the class let loose an annoyed grumble but a boy that Kakashi recognized as a Nara gave Kakashi a nod of approval. Kakashi returned it before turning back around to face the teacher.

By then the flustered man had mostly recovered from his shock of meeting the infamous Copy Nin and now seemed to be trying to cope with the fact that Naruto had been adopted and was the Copy Nin’s son. Kakashi almost felt sorry for the poor guy. The way his face was quickly changing from a red shade to deep purple couldn’t be healthy. 

Kakashi turned to look at the other man, and the longer he held his gaze the more the teacher shrank into himself. “Well… um. If that’s all. Um. Thank you for dropping that off. In the future, if Naruto… if he forgets something at home. Well, you can just give it to the front desk and they’ll make sure he gets it.”

“Oh. Alright then.” Kakashi gave the man a nod, then waved to the class before jumping back out through the window he came in. He grinned from ear to ear as he moved away from the classroom, all eyes still on him through the glass. To rectify that he quickly used a substitution jutsu and darted into a tree. It had the intended effect of making it look like he had disappeared into thin air and Kakashi got a laugh at the muted gasps he could hear from the students. It was nice to know that the simple things were still impressive to kids that age.

Kakashi hopped down from his hiding spot was just starting to stroll away from the school towards the market place when a voice from behind him made him pause.

“Wait, please!” For a moment Kakashi considered jumping back into one of the trees to hide or taking off on the rooftops but decided against both. His morning had been rather stressful after his conversation with Yoshino and it might be fun to mess with this person before doing his shopping.

When he turned around, however, he was intrigued. The TA from Naruto’s class was chasing after him, clearly out of breath. The young man finally caught up to Kakashi but by then he was too out of breath to speak. He was holding out his hand, as if that was going to keep Kakashi from moving, but his other hand was on his knee, his head down as he huffed. 

Finally Iruka had caught his breath enough to speak. He stood up and looked Kakashi in the eye. “You said you adopted Naruto?” 

“Yes, I did.” Kakashi prepared himself for any response, knowing that the way people reacted to Naruto was always in the air. Everyone had an opinion and it was always hugely negative or hugely positive and never in between. Kakashi was well aware that this was going to become a problem in the future but, he couldn’t begin to imagine how to solve that problem. He could only hope that Naruto’s sunny disposition would show people just how good of a kid he was. 

Iruka gave him a tentative smile. “I just… I wanted to say thank you.” Kakashi was stunned and immediately put Iruka in the ‘reacted positively’ category in his mind. 

Kakashi let the surprise show on his face. “Thank you? For adopting someone?” 

“Yeah, I mean. I saw Naruto struggling and I wasn’t sure what to do. The Hokage told me it was out of my control so I’m glad to see it’s in someone else’s control, so to speak.” It seemed it was only just now occurring to Iruka that this conversation might look a bit odd to Kakashi. His face flushed.   


Iruka took a deep breath and started again, obviously determined to get his point across. “I guess what I’m saying is, I’m glad to see someone is taking care of Naruto. He needs that in his life, and god knows the village doesn’t need any more orphans.”

“You seem very invested in this.” Kakashi tried to appear suspicious of Iruka but knew it wasn’t working that well. The young man was just too genuine, too interesting. He had mentioned speaking to the Hokage about Naruto’s care and this intrigued Kakashi greatly. Most chunin wouldn’t have the guts to approach the leader of the village about a child, meaning that Iruka felt some kind of kinship to the boy with that kinship likely being a similar experience in the orphanage. After Kakashi’s own exposure to the broken orphanage system he couldn’t blame Iruka for wanting to help Naruto. He was still going to confirm all of this information later that day, probably by breaking into the records office, but Kakashi was slowly warming up to Iruka. If nothing else, he was certainly more reactive than most, which made him entertaining to watch. 

“I am. I see a lot of myself in Naruto. Just happy that he doesn’t have to be alone anymore.” Iruka gave Kakashi a beaming smile, and Kakashi gave him a nod in reply. So few wished happiness for Naruto that any ally was a good ally, and Iruka was already showing signs of being the next Monster of the Mission Room. With the potential to corral the jonin and ANBU just by some carefully placed words and some freely given scolding, Iruka was likely going to be a powerful friend.

“I’m going to guarantee it.”

“Good. Thank you, Mr. Hatake.” The young man bowed slightly, his grin quirking up to one side in a way that hinted at mischief. It was easy enough to throw him off kilter, however.

“Kakashi.” As predicted, Iruka hadn’t expected Kakashi to be so informal and he grew flustered once more. 

“Oh, um. Thank you Kakashi. I’m Iruka, by the way.” Kakashi remembered this but didn’t bother mentioning that. 

He paused for a moment, acting as if he had just remembered something, then gave the young man a smile. “It was nice talking to you, Iruka. But don’t you have a class of gremlins to be looking after?” Watching Iruka’s face go from friendly to horrified was priceless, and one of the best parts of Kakashi’s week by far. It was easy enough to imagine what nearly thirty ninja wannabes would do with their rather mousy teacher without Iruka there to protect the other man and Iruka clearly thought the same. 

“Crap, right!” Iruka didn’t waste any time taking off back towards the academy, although he did give Kakashi a wave and a smile over his shoulder as he left. 

Kakashi, in turn, began to walk towards the market place once more, a content look on his face. It put him at ease to know that Naruto would have support in his class and he couldn’t wait until Iruka took on some mission room duty. It would be a show Kakashi was sure to enjoy. 

\---------------

The week went by in a blur and every second of time he had was taken up by either taking care of Naruto or getting things ready to take care of Naruto. He had taken Yoshino up on her offer to meet with the other parents and it had been both enlightening and terrifying. Kakashi, for the first time in his life, felt out of his league. The other parents had been doing this for so much longer and he had gone in thinking that they were better parents than him. When one of them brought up how difficult it was to get her kid dressed in something that wasn’t a tutu and a winter coat he felt a flood of relief. He brought up the struggles he had experienced trying to help Naruto get changed and instead of the disappointed looks he expected he got groans of agreement. The realization that all the other parents were struggling with their kids just as much as he was helped him relax and soon enough they were exchanging tips and tricks. Nothing they told him, however, could have prepared him for the nightmares.

At first, they weren’t even a problem. Both Kakashi and Naruto were so worn out from all the rapid changes in their lives that they slept completely undisturbed through the night. It was when things began to settle into routine that Kakashi was first awoken by muted crying. The sound was so unlike Naruto that Kakashi dashed into his room immediately, thinking that the boy was somehow hurt. The sound of the door opening brought a swift end to the crying, although Kakashi could still hear tiny sniffs and gasps from under the blankets as Naruto fought to regain control of his breathing. Instantly Kakashi was next to the bed, reaching out to the little boy. The pile of blankets flinched at the touch and Kakashi pulled his hands away as if they’d been burned. He tried for a different approach.

“Naruto, it’s me, it’s Kakashi. Can you tell me what’s wrong? Are you hurt?” The blankets shivered but didn’t reply.

“Hey, whatever’s going on you can tell me. What happened, did you fall off the bed and hit your head or twist something?” Still no response. Kakashi went from worried to panicked. As his emotions escalated he decided to throw caution to the wind.

“Naruto, I’m going to pull back the blankets, ok? I need to check on you to see if you need medical care.” With that warning he gently tugged the blankets off the small boy. 

The blankets revealed that Naruto was curled in on himself as tightly as possible, tiny arms clutching his wolf plush to his chest. Tears still leaked from his eyes, despite them being squeezed tightly shut, and his breathing was erratic and sharp. Kakashi did an initial check without touching him but when he didn’t see any immediate injury he grew more worried. 

“Naruto, can you tell me what’s wrong? I want to help you but I can’t know how until you talk to me.” Kakashi thought for a moment before adding onto his statement. “I promise, whatever it is I won’t be mad at you. Remember we talked about this? You’re a kid and still learning a lot. I won’t be mad or upset when you make mistakes. Whatever’s going on, I would like to know so I can try and make it better.” 

Naruto finally opened his eyes and peeked up at Kakashi. 

“There was… a monster.” For a moment Kakashi had the urge to check around the apartment, but he knew if something had gotten in the traps would have been set off. Kakashi then reminded himself that he was dealing with a four year old and that the monster was more than likely the result of a vivid nightmare, rather than an intruder. 

“A monster?” Kakashi asked, hoping Naruto would clarify. Luckily for him, it wasn’t hard to convince Naruto to talk. 

Naruto nodded. “It was hurting people and I tried to get it to stop but people thought I was the monster and they started chasing after me. They kept calling me names and throwing things and the real monster kept hurting more people but that just made them more mad at me.” The boy started crying again and Kakashi could only think of one solution to this problem. He pulled himself onto the bed, gently picked Naruto up and settled the boy on his lap. He wrapped Naruto up in a blanket, then in his arms and rested his chin on top of Naruto’s head. 

“I’m sorry, that sounds like an awful dream.” Naruto gave another nod but took some deep breaths. He wasn’t crying anymore but his nose was still running. It was clear he was still shaken up by the whole thing so Kakashi came up with a quick Plan B.

“Naruto, have I told you about my childhood best friend?” 

The sudden change in topic had Naruto looking up at him in surprise. “No, I don’t think so?”

Obito was the best distraction in the world when it came to bad moods. The other boy had always been so cheerful and loud. Kakashi smiled down at the other person who he related the words cheerful and loud to. “Want to hear some stories about him?”

Naruto was practically bouncing up and down, so much so that his head nearly collided with Kakashi’s jaw. “Yeah, yeah! I wanna learn all about him!”

Kakashi grinned as he tried his best to calm the boy down to listen to some stories. “His name was Obito.”

“Was?” Kakashi hadn’t been expecting Naruto to catch on that quickly. Then again, Naruto wasn’t as scattered brained as people thought. The boy was perceptive and while he still struggled to read, Naruto could pick up other people's emotions easily. This was good when he was in public but when he was at home this often left Kakashi feeling exposed. Very few people in recent years managed to get close to him and they certainly couldn’t read him like a book like Naruto could after only two weeks. 

Kakashi realized he had been lost in thought and scrambled to try and explain himself. “He’s… I lost him a while ago.” It wasn’t a good explanation but he hoped it would be enough. 

“I’m sorry Kashi.” The tiny hand that grabbed his was unexpected but was grounding nonetheless. So few people had the ability to make others feel better with a single action or a couple of select words. The last person who Kakashi had met who had that ability was his Sensei and he was happy to see that it had been passed on. 

Kakashi squeezed the hand in return. “It’s ok, Naruto. I’m gonna tell you about him so you can help me remember him. Sound like a good plan?”

“Yeah! I’ll remember him forever!” 

Kakashi spent the next hour retelling the funniest Obito stories he could think of. Naruto absorbed each one of them like a sponge, his wide eyes never leaving Kakashi’s face. They both got a few laughs in and by the end of the hour Naruto was beginning to doze off again. Kakashi carefully pulled the young boy off his lap and placed him in the bed, but he was hesitant to leave. Worry plagued his mind and Kakashi found himself torn. He knew most parents were big on making their kids sleep by themselves but tonight, just this one night, Kakashi knew he couldn’t let Naruto face the dark alone. Quickly Kakashi grabbed his blanket and pillow from his bed, then came back to Naruto’s room. He set up his bedding on the floor by Naruto’s bed and laid down to sleep. If his sleep was lighter than usual and if Naruto accidentally stepped on him in the morning, that was fine by Kakashi. He had the peace of mind that Naruto slept soundly and safely, protected from the nightmares by his loyal father. 

\---------------

The realization hit him like a train wreck the following morning. He hadn’t even been doing anything specific, just preparing Naruto’s lunch and thinking back to the previous night. It was with these thoughts that he remembered that he hadn’t visited the memorial stone in almost two weeks. He had been so caught up in taking care of Naruto that he hadn’t even given those who mattered most to him a thought. It wasn’t a good enough excuse, he should have made time to visit the stone at least once since bringing Naruto home. 

The guilt that followed the realization was crushing, almost pulling Kakashi to the ground, tears already spilling from Obito’s eye. He had let them down, he needed to leave now, he had to-

“Kashi, you alright?” Bright blue eyes looked up at him with concern. Kakashi drew on every bit of training he had gone through to pull himself together enough to smile. It was hollow and fake but he hoped it would pacify Naruto enough to get him to school.

“I’m fine, Naruto. Just thinking about boring adult things.”

“Ew, gross. Adult things are the worst.” Kakashi responded with a short, empty laugh. Naruto gave him another look but Kakashi was saved from further questioning when the doorbell rang. Naruto ran to answer it and Kakashi could hear the excited chatter of the young child as he greeted his friends.

“Kashi! Mrs. Nara, Shikamaru, and Choji are here!” He finished up with Naruto’s lunch and walked out to greet the group. During the parent meet up Yoshino and Choji Akimichi’s mother, Chizue, had discussed taking turns walking the kids to school, freeing up time for the other parents to get more done and helping out those like Kakashi who would be back to active duty eventually. Kakashi thanked the gods that it was Yoshino’s turn and not his. Then again, maybe he thanked them too soon. The woman took one look at him and, from the way she was frowning, knew something was wrong. 

Kakashi did his best to ignore her and instead kneeled down to help Naruto get himself together and to give him his lunch. “Be good to your teachers Naruto and remember to stay awake.”

“I will! Have a good day Kashi!” The boy gave him a hug and wide grin before darting over to stand next to Shikamaru. The children didn’t waste any time and started walking to the academy but Yoshino stayed behind. 

“Hatake-”

“They’re getting away from you, better run if you want to catch up.” Kakashi gave her a smile that she clearly didn’t buy but she turned to follow after the kids. He knew he would hear about this later from her but he didn’t care at that moment. As soon as the group was out of sight Kakashi was out the door and running to the memorial stone. 

It took him less to a minute to arrive but the moment he was there he suddenly didn’t know what to do. So much had changed in two weeks. How could he even hope to catch them up? For years he had visited daily whenever he was in the village, keeping them up to date on what happened, every tiny detail laid out to them. Now there was so much, the thought of it was overwhelming. Should he tell them about what happened yesterday night? But they didn’t know that Naruto was home yet so he had to go back further. Would they be hurt to learn it had been two weeks? God, he had forgotten them. 

It was only when it became difficult to breathe that Kakashi realized he was sobbing. It was the middle of the day in a very public place and he was having a breakdown. Somehow he couldn’t move, he was frozen in place because despite his breakdown he still hadn’t told them what had happened in his life.

“Sensei. Rin. Obito. I… I took Naruto home.” He paused, trying to collect himself but the action only made him sob harder. It brought the thoughts into more clarity which only made them more painful.

“I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I forgot to visit. It’s been so busy, but that’s no excuse. I should have found the time. I should have tried harder.” Kakashi collapsed to his knees, the energy draining from him as tears fell freely. His body shook with the force. 

Time ceased to exist. The only thing Kakashi understood was the burn of tears falling down his face, his mask growing soggy from them and the air becoming even more difficult to breathe. He was just about to rip the mask off, just so he could catch his breath when a hand gently took his and pulled it away from his face.

“My friend, I can’t recall a time I have seen you this upset.” Kakashi didn’t want to look up. He knew Gai would be there, hovering protectively over him but Kakashi let himself be comforted by the fact that Gai couldn’t see the severity of his breakdown. Gai knew it was bad, but if he got a look at Kakashi’s face he would know just how far down Kakashi had fallen. 

Not finding the energy to respond, Kakashi just gave the other man a nod. Gai moved next to him, kneeling by his side and Kakashi could feel himself collapsing further. He curled in on himself and Gai went with him until Gai’s arm was bent awkwardly with his elbow propped on the ground in front of him. Kakashi tried to pull his hand away so Gai could sit back up but the man just gripped his hand tighter. 

They stayed that way for some time, Kakashi trying to gather his thoughts and stop the tears, Gai refusing to give up his hand all the while. It is only when his tears ran out that Kakashi is able to pull himself back up and take some deep breaths. Before such an action would have made things worse again but this time Gai’s hand acted as a tether to reality, something to pull Kakashi back from the guilt. At the end of the day, Gai was one of the only truly good ninja that Kakashi knew. Gai wasn’t the type of man to waste his time with people he didn’t care about or think the best of. If Gai was here, supporting him through this, that meant that he had seen something worthwhile in Kakashi. That singular thought pulled him out of his turmoil long enough to collect himself. 

“I forgot them.”

“You didn’t forget them, Kakashi.”

“But I did, I forgot them.”

“You didn’t forget them. You forgot your guilt. You let go of your mourning.”

“I shouldn’t have. I need to-” Gai cut him off.

“Why? Why should you continue this? It’s caused you a great deal of suffering to come here every day. You live with a constant reminder of what you have lost and everyday you force yourself to relive it.” Their eyes met and Kakashi could tell that Gai believed every word he said. His face was the definition of determined, with his jaw set firmly and his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. 

Kakashi shook his head. He knew Gai was right but it felt impossible to admit to himself. “They deserve to be remembered, I need to tell them about Naruto.”

“What about him?” That crushing guilt was back, but this time for a different reason. 

“I… I adopted him. I was going to tell you but I got so caught up in everything.” He turned away, not wanting to see Gai’s expression when he learned that Kakashi had forgotten him as well.

Gai squeezed his hand tightly. “I think they would be quite happy to hear that.” Those simple kind words brought forth emotion that Kakashi couldn’t describe. It was somehow frustration and hurt and guilt and sorrow all at once and with its arrival Kakashi lost control of himself, just for a moment. 

“But I should have told them!” Kakashi’s voice echoed through the air, and silence followed. The outburst was so unlike him that Kakashi expected Gai to mention it, to use it to drive his point home about how bad coming to the stone was for Kakashi. Anyone else would point out that the guilt had hit a breaking point and that it would only get worse if left unmanaged. Gai instead focused on Kakashi’s words. 

“Don’t you think they would be more happy to hear you are caring for a child? And such an important child to them, as well? Your sensei would be proud to hear that his legacy is under such attentive care.” The words were filled with emotion, Gai was undoubtedly tearing up. 

“But how are they supposed to know if I don’t tell them?” Even to Kakashi the words felt childish but Gai once again didn’t comment. 

“Because they are watching over you. The people we love that we lose, they watch over us and check up on us. They ensure that we live our lives to the fullest and it’s our job to do so. You are still in the springtime of your youth, only nineteen and so hip! They would not want you to waste a second of it.” 

“I don’t want to let them down, though. I want them to be happy.” Kakashi whispered, well aware that he had no ground to stand on. If this had been a challenge Gai would have already won by a landslide. Whatever he said next was just a nail in the coffin. 

“That is the dilemma. Because they would be happy if you were happy but you don’t let yourself be happy because they aren’t here to be happy.” Gai’s voice was soft, his grip on Kakashi’s hand unwavering. 

Kakashi let out a dry, humorless laugh. “Yeah, sounds about right.”

They sat in silence for a moment, before Gai started up again. “Kakashi, my dear friend, it sounds like you have much to live for. Now, more than ever.”

“I do. Naruto... It’s only been two weeks but he’s such a good kid. And it was so hard for him in the system but my god, he’s come so far. Two weeks and he’s already happier and healthier and… I want to give him the best life possible.” 

Gai took a deep breath, clearly readying himself to say something that Kakashi wouldn’t like. “That may be difficult, if you disrupt your life by coming here every day.” 

“I… I know. But I don’t want to forget them.” He was beginning to feel like a broken record but at this point that was his only excuse to keep coming to the memorial stone.

A soft, kind laugh came from Gai. “How could you? You are caring for your sensei’s child. You ensure that his legacy lives on and, more importantly, you ensure that his family is happy. Whether you want to admit it, you were part of that family and he would want you to be just as happy as Naruto is.”

“I’m going to have to stop coming here, aren’t I?” Kakashi felt small in a way that was entirely uncomfortable and he clamped down on Gai’s hand like a vice to keep the feeling from overpowering him. 

The other man didn’t flinch, even as his hand was being crushed. “Perhaps. But an occasional visit never hurt anyone. It’s not a habit that can be maintained when you have a child. From my understanding, children take more time than one would think.”

Kakashi groaned and felt all the tension release at once. His grip on Gai’s hand returned to a simple hold and he sent Gai a weary smile. “You can’t even begin to imagine. I love Naruto but my god, I don’t think he’s ever tired. I also have this theory that they are giving the kids coffee in class right before they send them home.”

Gai gave a booming laugh, the sound filling the valley. “What purpose would that serve?”

“Psychological torture. If the parents can’t take their kid being a ball of energy they certainly can’t handle their kid being a ninja.” Gai responded with another laugh and the conversation continued, Kakashi catching Gai up on all the ups and downs of his adopting Naruto. When he ran out of stories he sat there for a moment, turning back to look at the stone. Gai noticed the change in mood and sat up straighter.

“Gai, I meant to ask you something before all this started but you were on a mission and I didn’t get the chance.”

“There is no time like the present, my friend.”

“If something happens to me, I would like you to take Naruto in. I can’t think of another person I trust with him as much as you. You should come by and meet him sometime. You both have so much energy, maybe you’d be able to actually tire him out.” Kakashi didn’t look away from the stone but he could hear Gai openly sobbing. He winced slightly at the thought of the impending hug and how wet it would be. Still, he couldn’t help but smile down at the stone. He had a feeling that Gai was right. They would be happy to see Kakashi moving on, no matter how painful it was to take that first step. They would be happier still to learn that Naruto was the reason he was starting to heal. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to tentatively say that I'll be updating every two weeks. That's my goal at least. I have the next few chapters planned out and partially written but my work schedule changes wildly each week. Light schedule next week so I hope to use the time to knock out a few chapters before things get hectic again.


	3. Dad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having a ton of fun writing this! It's not perfect but it's been helping with my stress a lot. I'm going to try and keep up the two week update schedule. Also, thank you so much to everyone who's left a kudo or a comment! You guys really keep my motivation high and I appreciate all the kind words so much!
> 
> The pacing for the story is going to start to pick up in the next few chapters but I wanted to get a solid foundation down for both Kakashi and Naruto before introducing other characters. Couldn't resist bringing Gai in early though, he's just too awesome to leave out!

“My eternal rival, I-” A trap going off interrupted Gai’s speech. It was just as well, because his sudden arrival had scared Naruto. The poor boy had just started telling Kakashi about how his day had gone over dinner when Gai had come bursting in through the now broken front door. Kakashi could hear muted struggles coming from the entrance way but took his time getting there. If Gai had to hang upside down in a sealed trap for a bit longer maybe it would help him remember not to just burst into the apartment next time. 

Kakashi kneeled down in front of Naruto, more concerned about comforting the boy than releasing Gai. “I’m sorry he startled you Naruto. That man out there is named Gai. He’s a very close friend of mine and I was hoping you two could meet at some point. Although, I had hoped he would be a little bit less loud about it.” 

Naruto’s eyes were wide but no longer filled with alarm. “Oh, that’s alright Kashi.” He turned to look down the hallway, obviously curious. “Can I go meet him?”

“Sure kid.” They both left the kitchen and headed out to deal with Gai. By that point Gai had worked himself out of the trap holding him upside down, but he clearly hadn’t considered that Kakashi might layer his traps. It only took Gai’s feet touching the ground for a second trap to go off. This time Gai was plastered to the wall. All the while a seal kept him locked out from the rest of the house. Naruto approached the scene cautiously but Kakashi held him back, not wanting him to get caught in a trap by accident. 

Kakashi watched as Gai struggled with the new sets of traps. He probably would have let Gai stay there a while longer but an insistent tug at his pant leg from Naruto forced him into action. It took quite a few minutes but finally he had disarmed all of the traps in the hallway and properly invited Gai inside. The other man didn’t even flinch as he fell from where he was glued to the wall. He instead landed on his feet, then shot up to give Naruto a thumbs up and a gleaming smile. 

“Hello Naruto! My name is Gai and I am your father’s eternal rival!” Naruto turned away for a second, waiting for the shine on Gai’s teeth to die down a bit.

“You’re his rival?”

Gai stood up straight and nodded fiercely. “Yes! He and I met in the springtime of our youth and have been friends ever since!” 

It was clear that Gai’s cheerfulness was infectious to Naruto, as the boy’s smile grew with every word. “That’s awesome! I didn’t know Kashi even had a springtime of youth!” 

Gai’s laugh was both startled and strong enough to have him collapsing on the floor, wheezing and carrying on for longer than necessary. Kakashi wondered what he had done to deserve this. Naruto looked between the two of them, not understanding what had caused Gai’s strong reaction. It took a few minutes but Gai finally picked himself up off the floor, wiping tears from his eyes as tiny giggles continued to erupt from him. 

“Ah yes, when someone is so cool it can seem that their youth progressed too quickly but I assure you, Kakashi is as youthful as ever! In fact, I hear that you are helping to keep Kakashi moving!” The words energized Naruto and suddenly the boy was wearing a smile that rivaled Gai’s. Kakashi had a sinking feeling that Gai’s energy would only amplify Naruto’s and the two would be an unstoppable force by the end of the night. 

“Yeah! Kashi and I go to the park and train together and he’s teaching me how to do cartwheels and I’m not good at them but he promises it takes practice and I’ll get better and already I can do a forward roll and a backward roll but once I hit my head on a rock doing them and we had to go home so Kashi could make sure I didn’t get a headache.” Naruto said all of this in a singular breath. Gai grinned up at Kakashi and Kakashi now realized exactly how badly he had messed up. Both Naruto and Gai were walking, talking balls of energy. Either they would eventually wear each other out or destroy the apartment. Possibly both. 

Even deep in thought, Kakashi didn’t miss Gai subtly making a hand sign, nor did he miss the substitution jutsu Gai had used with a clone, allowing Gai to disappear into the kitchen undetected by Naruto. Kakashi took that as the other man wanting to speak privately and immediately thought of an excuse to leave Gai’s clone alone with Naruto.

Kakashi made a show of looking back towards the dining room table where the dishes from their dinner remained. “Naruto, I’m going to go clean up the table. Will you be ok hanging out with Gai for a while?”

“Yeah, yeah! Gai is really cool! But his eyebrows are kind of weird.” Cruel honesty was something Gai was used to but Kakashi didn’t like the idea of Naruto being unnecessarily mean to others. 

He frowned down at Naruto and the boy quickly picked up on the change in attitude. “Naruto, that’s not nice to say. Please apologize to Gai.”

“I’m sorry Gai.” He was happy to note that Naruto did indeed look sorry. More than likely he didn’t want to lose the friend he had just made. 

“Thank you, Naruto.” The clone’s eyes were shimmering with tears but they were gone in a few blinks. 

Kakashi watched the clone and Naruto head to the living room, then turned and met with Gai in the kitchen. He had dropped the excited attitude and seemed slightly troubled.

The spandex clad man looked at the kitchen door, his eyes locked in the direction of the living room. “Kakashi, that boy is too small.”

“I know. I’ve been making some high calorie meals for him and he seems to be gaining some weight but it’s been an uphill battle. Fixing years of damage can’t be done in just two weeks.” Naruto had bounced back so quickly in some ways but hadn’t shown any progress in others. The boy was kind to those in pain but was slow to realize when he was causing it. He was gaining muscle from the increased exercise and training but not gaining nearly enough weight for a boy his age. And while he could now read at the appropriate level for a four year old ninja-to-be, his comprehension was poor at best. Kakashi couldn’t help but worry. 

He looked back over to Gai and it was clear the man shared his concerns. His eyebrows were furrowed, pure hurt and confusion marred his face.“How was this allowed to happen? He’s very underweight, I can tell just by looking at him. If I didn’t have such incredible control over my strength I would be afraid of breaking him.”

Kakashi shook his head, his gaze on the floor and shoulders hunched. “The orphanage in the village is… god, it’s horrible. Most of the kids had to fend for themselves. Apparently when they enter the academy they get put into the housing system in cheap little apartments.” Gai’s frown deepened at Kakashi’s words. His eyes still hadn’t left the kitchen door. 

“But that’s so young. They can’t even take missions at that point, how do they survive?” People never gave Gai enough credit, the man was quite intelligent. He had managed to connect the dots faster than most and started asking the real questions. 

“They’re given a stipend but it’s not nearly enough to survive on. I’m glad I got to Naruto when I did, otherwise he’d be living off of instant ramen just to get by. Gai, those kids, they’re starving and hurting and I don’t know what to do.” Kakashi watched as Gai slowly dissolved into tears, his arm covering his face while he quietly cried. 

“Kakashi, my dear friend, that is the saddest thing I have ever heard.” The tears suddenly stopped and Gai’s arm shot out, grabbing both of Kakashi’s hands. Kakashi recognized that expression immediately. Gai had made a hasty decision. “You have inspired me! I will do my part and ease some of their pain by adopting a child of my own!” 

The idea gave Kakashi pause. Gai was the only person he trusted with his entire being with Naruto, and yet Kakashi knew that Gai was overly emotional. That, mixed with the abuse the orphans of the village faced, didn’t seem like a good combination.

“Gai, I’m not sure-” Gai cut him off, clearly too excited to let Kakashi speak.

“It is genius! The only way to right such a wrong is to care for a child like you have. You are truly a kind man, I can only hope that I can reach such a high standard of care with my own child!” From the volume alone Kakashi knew there was no changing his mind. 

“You’re really going to do this?” Kakashi’s voice wavered with uncertainty. The grin he received in reply, however, was confident and sure. 

“Yes! You speak so passionately about this that I cannot ignore the problem. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.” 

Kakashi nodded, knowing that Gai had made his decision but still questioning if it was the right one. Despite this, he couldn’t find it in his heart to discourage Gai, especially when his intentions were good. “I wish you the best of luck.” 

There was a booming laugh from the other room and both Gai and Kakashi quietly peaked out the kitchen door to watch as Naruto and the Gai clone ran around the coffee table, chasing each other as part of some kind of game. They ducked back into the kitchen before they could be spotted by Naruto, but seeing the boy reminded Kakashi of something that needed done. 

“Gai, while you’re here I would like to tell Naruto that you would be his legal guardian should something happen to me.” 

The other man’s face became serious but soft. When he spoke his voice was gentle. “I can bring him out here if you’d like.”

“No, let him play a bit more. He needs this, he deserves the chance to be a kid and goof off.” Kakashi poked his head back out the door and watched Naruto run circles around the Gai clone, only for the clone to take a sudden dive for Naruto, too quick for the boy to evade. The laughter at being caught was like bells, light and cheerful and so different from the muted sounds that used to fill Kakashi’s apartment. Kakashi turned his attention to Gai and watched different expressions cross his face. Worry, joy, fear, happiness, and doubt. All emotions that had taken over Kakashi’s life since Naruto arrived. 

“Better get used to having your emotions thrown into a blender Gai. That’s what having a kid does to you.” Gai nodded and smiled at Kakashi’s words, his eyes glimmering with fresh tears.

“Yes, but look at the reward.” Kakashi turned back to watch Naruto again. The little boy was now teaching the Gai clone some kind of drawing game he had learned in school, where one person drew a small item, then passed the paper to the next person for them to add something on until they had a monstrous piece of art. Kakashi was already planning where to put it on the fridge. He thought back to Gai’s words and nodded. Yes, the reward was certainly worth any emotional upheaval. Just so long as Naruto kept smiling.

\---------------

It was only 4:15 PM but Kakashi was already concerned. Naruto was fifteen minutes late getting home, and while this wasn’t necessarily unusual, Kakashi couldn’t help but worry. As far as he knew, all of Naruto’s friends from school had other commitments and couldn’t spend time with Naruto until the next day. That meant there shouldn’t have been anything to hold Naruto up and knowing that Naruto wasn’t playing with his friends only amplified Kakashi’s near constant worry. The village could be a dangerous place at times, even for the most skilled shinobi. And with the pure hate the villagers felt for Naruto, the danger would be higher still...

Kakashi was out the door in seconds. Before he could even start his frantic search, however, a rather pissed off looking jonin came marching up the stairs with Naruto in tow. He was holding the boy by the back of his shirt in the same manner that the orphanage staff did. Kakashi didn’t even bother trying to stop himself from running over to yank the man’s hand away from Naruto, protectively pulling the boy into his arms. The man had the audacity to look mad at him, but when he met Kakashi’s eyes he stopped in his tracks. Any jonin worth their rank would recognize the look of someone planning their death. Kakashi had to give him credit though. He might have stopped with the attitude but he hadn’t turned and run away. That took either a lot of bravery or a lot of stupidity. Holding in a snicker, Kakashi couldn’t help but think it was the latter. 

“Why are you here, and why were you dragging Naruto like that?” Kakashi kept his tone sharp and made it clear to the other man that he wasn’t welcome.

The man held his ground and glared Naruto down. “He was causing trouble again.”

The ‘again’ was concerning. Kakashi knew there were lots of rumors about Naruto being a troublemaker but so far he hadn’t seen any hints of that. In fact, he had almost been convinced that the village had made it up just to discredit the boy. Now, however… “How so?”

“He tried to trick the Hokage into eating laxatives.” The other man was fuming now, veins in his forehead bulging out with force.

It took everything in Kakashi’s power not to laugh. “What?”

“You heard me! He tried to tamper with the Hokage’s food!” A few drops of spittle flew from the man’s mouth as he shouted and Kakashi made a point of moving himself and Naruto out of the way before they were sprayed by spit. 

While Kakashi knew he was being petty, he really couldn’t hold back his next reply. “Yes, I did hear you. So did most of the building. You know a ninja is supposed to be stealthy, right?”

The man’s face turned an alarming shade of red, the veins in his forehead doing their best to pop. He reined in his temper long enough to assure Kakashi that if it happened again there would be consequences before he stormed away. Kakashi watched the man go, holding back his laughter. 

Once he was out of sight, Kakashi turned his attention back to Naruto. Despite the fact that the entire situation sounded like a big joke, Kakashi knew it went deeper than a simple prank. Yoshino had warned him that he would need to address Naruto’s bad behavior and it looked like that time had come. 

Naruto had been oddly quiet since his rather abrupt arrival back home. Kakashi looked down at him and sighed. The boy had that same heart breaking expression that he had worn when asking Kakashi if he was joking when he adopted him. The older man kneeled down and Naruto met his eye, tears already falling down his round face. 

“I’m sorry, Kashi.”

“Naruto, I’m not happy but you’re also still my kid, alright? We’re going to talk about it and you’ll probably end up grounded but you’re still my kid, ok?” Kakashi wanted to hug the boy desperately but he also knew that it would only make it harder to discipline him later. 

Naruto nodded and the tears stopped. Kakashi’s words had clearly eased him slightly, but not completely and they had yet to even talk about the prank. With a single look around, Kakashi decided that the public stairway to the apartment building was no place for a serious conversation.

“Hey Naruto, let's take a trip.” Naruto nodded again, still looking unsure. When Kakashi took his hand the boy relaxed a bit. He led them down the street, then towards the center of the village. Naruto seemed to think they were heading to the Hokage tower to apologize so when Kakashi walked right past it the boy’s curiosity finally won him over.

“Kashi, where are we going?” His voice was quiet and had a nervous edge. 

“Up there.” Kakashi pointed up at the roof of an apartment complex, which just led to an even more confused Naruto. The way the kid’s eyebrows furrowed together was cute, but his little pout when he didn’t understand was even better. 

“Why are we going up there?” Kakashi didn’t answer right away. Instead he kneeled down and motioned for Naruto to get on his back for a piggy back ride. The boy didn’t hesitate to launch himself at Kakashi’s back, even after the emotional turmoil. After getting his balance back, Kakashi stood and hopped up onto the roof top. 

“Because it has the best view in the village of the Hokage monument.” He put Naruto down and turned him to face the rock face. Once he was sure Naruto was looking, Kakashi sat down and patted the spot next to him for Naruto to do the same. 

As he sat down, Naruto looked up at the stone, then back to Kakashi. “I don’t get what the big deal is. It’s just a bunch of heads on some rocks.”

Kakashi ignored the crude but apt description in favor of his lesson. “Do you know who those people on the rocks are?”

“I guess the Hokage’s, right?” Naruto looked up to Kakashi, his eyes cautiously hopeful. 

The older man gave Naruto a nod. “That’s right. And why are they up there?”

“Because they are the leaders of the village.” This time Naruto’s answer was more confident.

“That’s one reason, but there’s another.” Always ready to learn something new, Naruto perked up and gave Kakashi his full attention. 

“Yeah?”

Kakashi smiled down at the boy. “Those people on the rock protect this village. Every single person in this village is someone that the Hokage has sworn to protect with their life, and the village recognizes them but putting them on this monument. It’s a big honor.”

“Wow….” Naruto had turned back to stare at the rock. His eyes were glistening and full of wonder.

“Wow, indeed. Now, I took you here because-”

“I’m going to become Hokage!”

“What?” This was not what Kakashi had expected to happen. While he hadn’t exactly planned how this would go, he figured he would at least help Naruto understand the hierarchy of the village and maybe give a little respect to the Hokage. In all his years, he certainly wouldn’t have predicted to have inspired such a dream in Naruto.

“Yeah, I’m gonna be Hokage someday!”

Kakashi tried his best to rein the conversation back in but he had a sinking feeling it was far too late. “Naruto, I don’t think you were listening to everything I said.”

“I was listening, Kashi! I heard what you said and it sounds like being Hokage is the best job for me!” Despite knowing he should be trying to get Naruto back on track, something about that sentence made Kakashi curious. 

“And why is that?”

“Because if I’m Hokage I’ll be able to protect you and everyone I care about!”

Kakashi looked down at Naruto and couldn’t help the twinge of pride that he felt. Naruto was truly a kind boy and Kakashi could only hope he remained kind for many years to come. Still, he knew he needed to address Naruto’s statement properly. After all, being the leader of the village meant a lot more than protecting your friends and family. “That’s a very admirable goal, Naruto, but you would also have to protect the people you don’t like. It’s the Hokage’s job to take care of everyone in the village, even the not nice people.”

“Hm… that’s ok. When I’m the Hokage I’ll be strong and it’ll be easy to protect everyone, even if they don’t like me that much! And besides, the people who care about me make the people who don’t care about me seem like not a big issue, you know? Like, they were all around me before and they were really loud but now those people are mostly gone and they’re quiet. And it’s because the people who care about me are louder than the other people!” Kakashi gave Naruto a grin at those words. The speech had been so pure to heart, it was clear that Naruto believed every word. When coming from other people, it was difficult for Kakashi to see that he was really helping Naruto, but when it came from the boy himself it was harder to ignore. 

“Well, when you put it like that, it’s hard to argue. But I want you to understand my point for bringing you here. You need to give the current Hokage respect, ok? That means not putting laxatives in his food.” 

“But it would have been so funny!”

“Yes, but when you’re Hokage do you want people to put laxatives in your food?”

“No, I guess not. I should probably say sorry to the old man, huh?”

“That’s Lord Hokage, not the old man, and yes you should.” 

“Ok, let's go right now! I need to tell him that I’m going to be Hokage so he had better take good care of the village until I’m strong enough!”

“I promise he’s doing a fine job. And Naruto,” the boy paused and turned back to Kakashi. He looked so young, with his wild hair and big blue eyes and grin that lit up his entire face, “don’t grow up too quickly.”

\---------------

“Oh, Kakashi! When did you get a puppy!” Ūhei bounced around Naruto’s room, his excitement clear in his wagging tail.

It had been a week since Gai’s sudden visit and Kakashi was feeling the strain of caring for a child. Still, just because he was tried didn’t mean he could leave his ninken in the dark forever. He had decided to summon them on a Friday night after Naruto had already gone to bed. That way Naruto would have the weekend to get to know them and Kakashi would have the entire night before to explain what had happened to the dogs. However, he hadn’t factored in just how exhausted he would be, nor had he remembered that some of the dogs still acted like giant puppies. 

“Ūhei, please, try to stay quiet. I just got him to sleep. You can meet him when he wakes up in the morning.” Pacified by this, Ūhei trotted over to Kakashi, pressing himself against the man’s legs, tail still wagging fiercely. Kakashi decided it would be best to have this conversation far away from Naruto’s room and led them to the dining room where he immediately sat down at the table. The dogs crowded around him, all wanting information about the newest member of the house. Before they could ask anything though, Ūhei decided to speak up again. 

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner! We would have welcomed the pup, for sure boss!” 

Kakashi scrubbed a hand down his face, feeling very old all of the sudden. “It’s been… difficult. Naruto is very young. He’s been hurt quite a bit and is still getting used to living with me. I’m trying to ease him into it.” Looking around at the eight ninken who all blinked back up at him, Kakashi was now more sure than ever that waiting had been the right decision. When Naruto had first arrived he was easily overwhelmed by new things, as their shopping trip had shown. Now he was doing much better, but this would be the ultimate test. After all, what was more overwhelming to a four year old than meeting eight talking dogs?

“But we could help, boss! We could help with the puppy so you could rest. You look tired, boss. Doesn’t he, Pakkun?” The smallest dog of the pack had been quiet up until this point, but now he stepped forward, jumping up on the table to be closer to eye level with Kakashi.

“Boss, you sure about all of this? A kid is a lot of responsibility. They scream, they need lots of attention, they smell bad more times than not. It’s not going to get easier and Ūhei is right, you already look dead on your feet… so to speak.” Kakashi glanced at the chair he was sitting in then returned Pakkun's judgmental look.

“Pakkun, I appreciate your concern, but I have to do this. He’s… well, you know who he is to me. And not just that, you should have seen the place he was staying. Those kids were all alone, nobody was around to take care of them. And apparently they get placed in shit apartments after they enter the academy. He would really be alone then. I can’t let that happen to him. He needs someone.” The speech had drained Kakashi even more. He leaned his head back to rest while Pakkun continued to stare him down. 

When Pakkun didn't reply after a few seconds Kakashi let out a heaving sigh before lifting his head to look at the dog once more. The pug was scratching his chin with a front paw in thought. Finally, he nodded to himself, apparently having come to a decision. “Well, he obviously means a lot to you and it’s clear you're not changing your mind. That’s the longest I’ve heard you talk about something in months so the kid must be good for you.” With that Pakkun jumped down and faced the rest of the pack.

“Alright you lot. Boss has a new pup and he’s a part of the pack now. We protect him like pack and we’ll raise him like pack. Understood?” Ūhei gave a whooping cheer then darted over to the doorway of Naruto’s room, both watching Naruto and not-so-subtly standing guard. His tail thumped against the wall with each wag and it was already clear that Naruto was Ūhei’s new favorite person. The other dogs scattered around the small apartment after nodding and agreeing to Pakkun’s statement, some heading for the food bowls that Kakashi had put out before their arrival, others peaking into the room to get a glimpse at Naruto. Bull stayed behind and laid down at Kakashi’s feet. When Kakashi leaned over to give him a scratch behind the ears, the usually silent dog surprised him by speaking.

“Think you did good boss.” Despite the few words, coming from Bull that was a glowing compliment. 

“Thanks Bull. I agree.” 

\---------------

The pack refused to leave that night so when Naruto woke up the next morning he found himself surrounded by dogs. Kakashi had to give it to the kid, he didn’t panic or get overwhelmed. Instead, he went from being sleepy to ecstatic in seconds, leaping off the bed to start petting every dog that he could. The ninken, in turn, flocked to Naruto, each trying their best to grab his attention.

“Kashi! Kashi! There’re dogs everywhere!” 

“You got that right kid.” Pakkun was the only dog from the pack that wasn’t crowding Naruto. He stayed back with Kakashi, perched on top of the man’s head having only just woken up from a nap. It took Naruto a few moments to realize that Pakkun had indeed been the one to speak. When he did, Naruto pointed up at Pakkun, his eyes wide with a mix of alarm and wonder.

“Kashi! That dog can talk!” Pakkun gave Naruto a little wave with his paw but didn’t move from where he was dosing.

“Naruto, this is Pakkun. He’s part of my pack of ninken.” The dogs ran over to Kakashi when they were mentioned, then back over to Naruto for more pets. The boy didn’t hesitate to pet them but also looked down at them, confused.

“Ninken?” Kakashi sat down on the floor to join them, holding his cup of black tea up out of Bull’s reach. The large dog always did like to take advantage of his size to try and steal Kakashi’s drinks. 

“Ninja dogs. They are a group of dogs that I can summon at will to help me fight or help me track.” Bull earned a scowl from Kakashi as he sniffed up at the mug. Kakashi was forced to hold his arm directly up in the air, just to avoid Bull’s insistent nose. 

“If you summon them for specific reasons why are they here now? Oh! Are we tracking some missing-nin through the village? Can I help?” Worried filled Kakashi’s heart at the thought of Naruto tracking missing-nin. Just as quickly as the feeling had formed, he buried it and told himself he wouldn’t have to think about it for years.

“No, nothing like that. They wanted to meet you and say hello. The ninken are the closest thing I have to family anymore and they wanted to welcome you into the pack.”

“That’s so cool! Will I be able to summon them too?” Kakashi thought of the toad summoning scroll and internally winced. Jiraiya would likely want to pass the scroll onto Naruto when the boy was old enough and something about that stung. He pushed that feeling aside too and gave Naruto a shrug in response. 

“Maybe when you’re older.” Naruto nodded. He went back to petting the dogs but was now also bombarding them with questions. Bull and Akino quickly pulled away from the group, as they were older and didn’t have the energy to keep up with a hyperactive child. The rest did their best to keep up but it gave Kakashi an inappropriate amount of joy watching five energetic dogs meet their match. It was clear that Naruto was indeed Ūhei’s favorite person now, the dog stuck close to the boy and was constantly demanding his attention. Naruto didn’t mind at all and was asking Ūhei question after question. 

The steady stream of questions was a new constant in Kakashi’s life, he had learned how to tune it out when it was necessary. Even if he had been giving the questions Naruto was asking his full concentration, he never could have predicted what was coming. 

“How does summoning work? Can I learn it now?” 

Ūhei gave him a doggy grin and his tail smacked against the wood flooring with a thud as it wagged. “Well, it’s really not hard! You sign a contract with us then you use some blood-”

Naruto’s eyes went wide with alarm. “Blood! Kashi had to bleed to summon you guys?”

“Yeah, but it’s ok! Kakashi is-”

“He’s hurt!” Naruto took off, the rest of the pack and Kakashi right on his heels. The boy didn’t go far, just to the bathroom, where he began to dig around frantically. 

“Naruto? What’s going on?” Kakashi watched the boy throw small hotel soaps to the ground as he rooted through the cabinet. 

“I need to find the bandages!” While Kakashi was relieved that something wasn’t terribly wrong, he couldn’t help but be exasperated by the mess that was quickly growing in the bathroom. 

“Naruto, I’m ok. Really.”

Naruto shook his head in response, not looking up from the box of old lotions and shampoos he was currently searching through. “No, you need a bandaid. You got hurt and you’re bleeding so you need a bandaid.”

Kakashi wanted to mention that he had summoned the dogs last night and was no longer bleeding but he knew it would fall on deaf ears. Instead he decided to have some fun with Naruto. “Is that a rule?”

“Yes.” The older man couldn't help but smile at the kid's confidence in his statement. 

Naruto continued to dig while Kakashi and the pack watched from the doorway. After taking apart nearly the entire bathroom Naruto gave a shout of triumph and held up a box of bandaids in the air. Kakashi had bought them on a whim when he first adopted Naruto. The box was covered with cartoon dogs and the bandaid that Naruto pulled out had the face of a chibi style husky smiling up at him. 

Naruto made his way over to Kakashi, frown clear on his face as he began looking over the older man. When he didn’t find what he was looking for he met Kakashi’s eye. “Where did you get hurt?” His voice left no room for arguing, although Kakashi couldn’t help the slight huff of a laugh that he let out. It seemed that Naruto disagreed with Kakashi, however, and his frown deepened.

To keep Naruto from getting premature frown lines Kakashi held out his hand to display the tiny scabbed over cut on his thumb. Naruto nodded to himself and opened the bandaid, then carefully applied it. When he was done he inspected it before looking back up at Kakashi.

“Is that ok dad?” 

All the air had been sucked out of the room and Kakashi couldn’t speak. He knew he was Naruto’s father but Naruto had never called him dad, not until that moment. The word resonated in his ears, clanging around in his head until it hurt. Emotions hit him all at once, guilt, pain, happiness, gratitude, and love all rattling around until he was left with both the sense of everything being right in the world and feeling like an imposter. Naruto was his son, but he wasn’t, but the boy called him dad so he was. It all got mixed up until he felt ready to burst or cry or maybe just disappear. But he couldn’t do any of those things because Naruto was still staring up at him with those big blue eyes, waiting for a response. 

Kakashi’s voice was thick with emotion when he spoke. “Yes, it’s perfect. Thank you.” The boy clearly knew something was going on but didn’t question it, especially when he remembered that the house was full of talking dogs. Ūhei and Akino led Naruto away just in time for Kakashi to collapse onto the floor, too overwhelmed to be able to stand anymore. 

“Ok, I can see where you’ve been having trouble.” Pakkun hopped into Kakashi’s lap and didn’t protest when Kakashi picked him up to hold him. Bull settled against Kakashi’s back, a firm and steady weight that was familiar and grounding at the same time. 

Pakkun sighed, as if Kakashi were being purposefully difficult. “You knew this would happen eventually.” Kakashi nodded into Pakkun’s fur. 

The lack of verbal reply had Pakkun trying again. “This is a good thing.” Again, Kakashi nodded but didn’t say a word. 

“...Boss, you ok?” Kakashi took a deep breath and gently put Pakkun down onto his lap. The pug looked up at him with concern but Kakashi ignored it and instead took some deep breaths. 

Finally, after collecting himself, Kakashi felt ready to explain. “It is a good thing. I just… it’s hard. I’m not supposed to be the one Naruto calls dad.”

“Yeah, but you are. I mean, you can’t change what happened in the past but you’ve already done a lot to improve the future. Just look at the boy. You said it's been hard and that he’s been hurt. Well he doesn’t look that hurt to me boss, not anymore. You fixed him.” When Pakkun put it like that it sounded so simple but Kakashi had been living with Naruto for three weeks. He knew better than to think it would ever be easy. 

“Humans don’t work like that Pakkun.”

Pakkun rolled his eyes. “Fine. You helped him and will keep helping him. That better?”

“Yes.”

“Stubborn brat.” Pakkun paused for a moment, listening as Naruto spoke loudly to the pack. Apparently he was trying to explain what adoption was and the pack was trying to put it into terms they understood. It wasn’t going terribly well but Naruto was nothing if not determined. “That boy, he already reminds me of you, boss.”

“Really?” The thought put a small smile on Kakashi’s face. From where he stood Naruto was his polar opposite. Having an effect on the boy, a positive one, made Kakashi feel just a bit lighter. 

“Yeah, just won’t let things go, follows his own path, doesn’t let others push him around. I can tell he’s gonna be a good one. Just like his dad.” 

Kakashi nodded, his gaze downcast. “Sensei-”

“I meant you brat.” Pakkun’s words brought the word back into perspective, pulling Kakashi from the guilt and pain that thoughts of his old teacher brought up. Kakashi leaned back against Bull, letting the moment wash over him, letting himself think back on their conversation. He was Naruto’s dad. He was doing the right thing. He was helping. For once in his life, Kakashi was making a difference without a weapon in his hand and it felt good. 

“Thank you, Pakkun.” The three sat on the bathroom floor for the next hour, listening to the laughter that filtered in from the other room. It was a moment that Kakashi would think back on later, one that would ground him to his new reality. He was going to do his Sensei proud and be the best dad for Naruto that he could be. 

\---------------

“I would like to throw a birthday party for Naruto and I would like your children to attend.” 

It had been a few months now and Naruto had quickly adjusted to life with Kakashi. The older man was worried that this tentative peace would be broken when he returned to active duty but before he did, he wanted to give Naruto the best birthday possible. That meant inviting his friends over for a party, if Kakashi’s understanding of how birthdays usually went was anything to go by. Then again, Kakashi’s understanding of anything that had to do with kids felt shaky at best, even now. 

Still he wanted to do this, no matter how stressful it was to plan. That’s why he had only gathered the parents of three of Naruto’s classmates. Kakashi figured that a party with only four kids wouldn’t be unmanageable and it would be easier to convince a handful of parents that Naruto wasn’t a danger to their children. 

Looking around at the faces surrounding him now, he was suddenly unsure of his idea. He knew Yoshino liked Naruto enough to let Shikamaru come over for a party, but Chizue was still wavering between accepting and cautious. Tsume, Kiba’s mother, outwardly disapproved of Naruto and had tried to forbid Kiba from playing with him several times. Luckily for Naruto, Kiba was still in that stubborn I-do-what-I-want phase which meant when she tried to forbid their friendship, Kiba became even more determined to spend time with Naruto. Kakashi feared that the boy’s attempts to be Naruto’s friend would be put to a complete stop soon after seeing Tsume’s furious look in response to Kakashi’s request.

“Absolutely not! I’m already pissed that I can’t get my son out of that classroom, I will not leave him alone with the beast.”

Kakashi felt white hot rage course through him, but Yoshino beat him to the punch. Literally. 

The sound of the hit resonated through the small café that Kakashi had chosen to meet the other parents at, but it was a café that ninja frequented so no one even blinked an eye. So long as their table didn’t disturb the other customers the owners likely wouldn’t interfere. 

“Don’t you dare talk about that little boy like that. We’ve had this discussion before Tsume and if we have to talk about it again I’ll make sure to put some effort into my next punch.” Kakashi was more sure than ever that Yoshino really could take over the village and no one would dare try to stop her. The punch that she claimed to have put no effort into was already swelling and beginning to bruise, leaving a nasty discolored splotch along Tsume’s jaw. 

Tsume lifted her hand to her face, growling all the while. When she determined that no permanent damage had been done she shook her head, not bothering to look at any of the other members of the group.

“Doesn’t change anything. My son will not go to a party with… that boy.”

Yoshino was sitting down again, but it was clear she was more than willing to jump to Naruto’s immediate defense. “Tsume, Naruto isn’t the beast.”

“But he is. We can’t forget the facts or the past. That boy has the beast in him and there’s no point denying that.” Tsume’s voice was filled with disgust, her fists clenched on the table. Chizue saw this and moved her plate away from the other woman, not wanting her food to be used as a weapon later or destroyed in a fight. 

“There have been other vessels that have been trusted by their villages. Even here, the last vessel was a respected kunoichi.” Kakashi couldn’t bring himself to say her name but just thinking about Kushina made a lump rise up in his throat. 

“And look how well that ended.” The group was silent, killing intent slowly rising from Kakashi. Before he could act on it, however, Yoshino put a hand on his shoulder, effectively holding him back. 

“Kakashi, cut that out. You’ll be forced to visit the psychiatrist if you continue, you know how the Hokage feels about his ninja using their killing intent in the village without just cause.” Her voice cut through Kakashi’s fury, enough to keep him from lunging across the table. 

The woman then turned her attention to Tsume. “Now, I know how you feel-”

Something in Tsume broke. Her eyes grew wide, her teeth bared for the group to see as she lashed out. “You couldn’t possibly know how I feel! Who did you lose in that attack, Yoshino? Did you lose your partner? Did you lose your teammates? What about your fiancé? Did your fiancé die in front of you?”

Kakashi had to give Yoshino credit, she didn’t even flinch as Tsume practically spit in her face. “You aren’t the only person who lost people, Tsume. We all did. That doesn’t mean you get to blame a little boy for the deaths of those you care about.”

“I’m not blaming a child, I’m blaming the beast!” Tsume had still not calmed down, her words practically howled at the group. 

Seeing that Tsume wasn’t going to let that point go, Kakashi decided to step in and try a different approach. “Naruto hasn’t shown any signs of the nine-tails emerging.”

The angry woman’s eyes rolled and she turned her glare to Kakashi. “And how can I believe you?”

“If you don’t believe me then at least believe in the 4th Hokage’s seal.” Kakashi had full faith in his Sensei’s work, he had no doubt that the seal was holding strong and would continue to hold strong. 

Chizue chose that moment to finally speak up. “Shhh, we can’t speak of him.”

It was Kakashi’s turn to snap. “If we don’t talk about him then how is he supposed to be remembered!”

“...through Naruto.” Yoshino turned to look at Kakashi through watery eyes. “I’m sorry Kakashi, I should have noticed sooner. Seeing him like that and not being able to do anything. And he looks so much like the 4th.” The woman fell silent, a deep sorrow falling over the group at her words. The 4th Hokage had been a fixture in all their lives, known for his kindness and willingness to help in any way possible. His death had been felt by the entire village and the people at the table were no exception. To remind them exactly who Naruto’s father was seemed to be the tipping point, as Tsume’s expression turned guilty while Chizue used her napkin to dap at her eyes. 

While the rest of the group quietly mourned, Yoshino bounced back like only she could and became the fierce woman they all knew. She stood up at the table, grabbing the attention of everyone there. Her face was filled with determination and it was clear they wouldn’t be able to argue with what she was about to say. “All the children will be going. Kakashi is right, the 4th’s seal is strong and we have no right to question it. He died to protect this village and his son, the least we can do is make sure the boy has a happy childhood.”

Tsume gave the group a quiet nod, her eyes down. It reminded Kakashi of when the ninken were chastised and he couldn’t help but smile. A spur of the moment decision had Kakashi reaching out to pat her head. When her jaw snapped near his hand but didn’t bite through it - he wouldn’t put it past Tsume to resort to biting his hand off - he knew he had been forgiven and let out a laugh. The rest of the parents took that as their cue to relax and Yoshino led the group in planning for Naruto’s party. After a bit more convincing it was decided that everyone would drop off their kids for the weekend and the small group would have a sleepover. Chizue voiced her skepticism about Kakashi being able to handle four children at once and Yoshino shot it down, saying that she would join them as well. Her willingness to help shut down all future arguments or problems that the other adults had and Kakashi sent her a look of gratitude. 

That weekend Kakashi would be in charge of a party for Naruto. The boy would spend the day surrounded by friends and the night curled up with the ninken. In the morning everyone would stumble into the kitchen where Kakashi would be preparing enough food for an army, in other words barely enough food to feed the four growing boys. That weekend the boys would run havoc and Yoshino would send Kakashi after them, shouting at the group as a whole before targeting the leader, who was more often than not Naruto. Still, the boy would be happy. Naruto would spend the day smiling and laughing and carrying on and Kakashi would let him. Later Yoshino would nag him about letting Naruto get away with anything but they both knew Naruto was too kind to take advantage of Kakashi and that Kakashi wasn’t going to change any time soon. He was wrapped around Naruto’s finger and he wouldn’t have it any other way. 


	4. Healing Slowly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say thank you again to everyone who commented and left kudos, the response I have gotten for this story has amazed me! 
> 
> I'm posting this chapter early for a few reasons. One, I kind of want to get it out of the way. Two, it's been mostly finished for a while and I finally tied up all the lose ends for it yesterday night. Three, I have a small interlude I want to post next weekend. 
> 
> This story will take a bit of a turn after this chapter and the interlude, just a heads up! It will still keep the same tone but I want to switch perspectives and move forward in time a bit.

It had been a few weeks since Kakashi had returned to active duty and he was already feeling the strain. That’s why, when he heard a rather loud bang from the front door before the sun had even risen he promised himself that whoever it was would die quickly so he could go back to bed as soon as possible. He would have run but the traps hadn’t gone off, meaning whoever it was had been previously keyed into the wards by Kakashi. More than likely, this meant the intruder would be clad in green spandex and shouting about youth.

His suspicions were confirmed when a voice boomed from down the hall. “Ah, good morning Naruto! I was wondering if I could speak to your hip father for a moment!” Oh wonderful, Naruto was up too. This meant that the boy would probably get cranky later in the day and start making increasingly annoying demands for ramen. Kakashi would be too tired to say no because he had been woken up at an ungodly hour. Not that he had a problem with ramen but really, they would never stop eating it if Naruto had his way. 

Kakashi made a mental note to remove Gai from the apartment’s wards later as punishment for waking them up too early. He glanced at the hallway clock, which told him it was, in fact, four in the morning. No, Kakashi decided, he would go back to his original plan. Gai would die for this. 

Being as quiet as possible, Kakashi crept up on Gai and Naruto but was brought to a halt when he saw mini Gai. He shook off the image, assuring himself that it was just early morning delirium and moved forward to grab an empty vase as a weapon. Before he could use it to end the noise, however, mini Gai caught sight of Kakashi and spoke.

“Hello! You must be Uncle Kakashi!” 

The vase dropped and made even more noise as it shattered. Gai, Naruto, and mini Gai all stared at him. Kakashi knew his mouth was hanging open and could only hope that the darkness and his mask were enough to hide it. “Uncle… Kakashi?” 

“My most esteemed rival! We spoke previously about this but the time has finally come! I have followed you in your ways and adopted a child! This is Lee, my son!” Gai gave Kakashi a thumbs up and a pose. Lee watched excitedly then copied both the pose and the expression exactly. It felt like watching a horror movie. Oh god, there were two of them now.

Trying to bring the conversation back to reality and not the bizarre universe he had fallen into, Kakashi attempted to ask a more specific question. “Gai. I don’t understand. What?” It wasn’t exactly as specific as he had wanted. He blamed it on the time of day.

Gai barreled ahead as if Kakashi wasn’t slowly losing his mind right before his eyes. “I was inspired by you to adopt a son of my own and have been blessed to find Lee! The boy needed a father and when I saw his pure heart and unending dedication I knew it was fate!” While his question was technically answered, it still didn’t explain why Gai and Lee had felt the need to break in at four in the morning. 

Kakashi usually had time to ponder the oddities of Gai’s ways while Gai went on some kind of speech but today was already showing itself to be wildly insane. In the time that Kakashi would usually use to think, Gai and Lee had both started tearing up. Somehow their tears sparkled too bright in the hallway that was only lit by the moonlight, only leaving Kakashi more confused. How had Gai found a mini version of him? How had the universe allowed such a thing to happen?

“Father!” Lee launched himself at Gai and Kakashi swore it happened in slow motion.

“Lee!” Gai caught Lee, again seemingly in slow motion, and the two collapsed onto the ground, crying onto each other’s shoulders.

Then both green spandex suited people were openly sobbing in the middle of Kakashi’s hallway. There was still broken glass on the floor. Naruto looked like he wanted to ask a million questions but couldn’t pick one to start with. All of it was starting to give Kakashi a rather painful headache.

“Gai… Gai. Gai! Cut it out!” Gai and Lee both stopped crying, wiping their eyes with handkerchiefs that appeared out of nowhere and patting each other on the back. 

“I apologize for my rival’s attitude Lee, he is hip but he can not begin to understand the necessity of manful tears!” Kakashi’s eye twitched. 

“I understand Father!” The boy jumped to attention, throwing Gai a salute. The older man returned it, looking like he was going to start another speech. It was time for a distraction, he needed to get Naruto out of the room. After all, Kakashi’s initial plan had yet to change.

“Naruto, could you please take Lee to hang out in your room for a while. I need to have a conversation with Gai about what is and isn’t an appropriate time to visit.” Kakashi’s voice was tight but Naruto was too sleepy to react to his tone. He did seem to perk up at the idea of making a new friend though.

“Oh, right. This way Lee!”

“Yosh!”

The two headed for Naruto’s room, carefully avoiding the broken glass. The second they were gone and the door was closed Kakashi turned to Gai, ready to kill. Gai, however, had dropped his usually ‘youthful’ ways and was looking down the hallway, a solemn expression on his face. 

“I’m aware that you are not happy that I woke you but Lee revealed something to me this morning and I felt it couldn’t wait.” Gai was easy enough to read and it was clear he meant business. Even though he desperately wanted to, Kakashi couldn’t stay mad at Gai when the man looked so despondent. The silver haired man sighed, knowing he wouldn’t be getting back to bed any time soon. He motioned for the two of them to head to the living room, where Gai seemed to deflate onto the couch. It was strange seeing the usually lively man so defeated.

“Fine, you have my attention. I probably won’t kill you. What happened?” If Kakashi made it a point to stand over Gai while saying this, letting his irritation be known openly, he would blame it on how early it was. After barely any sleep he felt it was his right to be cranky, even as the other man grew somber. 

“Lee told me how much he was receiving for his food stipend.” Gai’s head was bowed, his eyes glued to the floor.

When Gai didn’t elaborate, Kakashi waved his hand in a motion to continue. “And?”

“It’s not just unlivable, it’s practically cruel.” This wasn’t all that surprising, knowing what the orphanage was like in the village.

“We already knew that Gai.” Despite the harsh words, Kakashi’s voice was soft. His heart went out to the children still in the system and he was well aware that Gai felt the same.

“But food is what fuels us. And children need lots of food as they are still developing. How does the village expect them to survive on such little money?” The other man looked up at Kakashi, desperately searching for an answer in his face.

“They don’t.” Kakashi watched as Gai’s eyes welled up with tears for the second time that morning, but this time it was out of pure sorrow. Only for a moment, Kakashi wished to return to the hallway where his headache was only from the volume and not from facing the deep rooted problems of the place they called home.

“Kakashi, you should have seen how he was living. It wasn’t just spartan, it was empty. His life was empty. There was nothing there.” Never had Gai sounded so despairing. The man’s head was down again, as if holding it up took too much out of him. 

Finally Kakashi let go of his last shreds of annoyance and sat down next to his friend, putting his hand on the other man’s arm. “I’m sorry Gai. I know it’s hard to see that.”

“There are other children still in the system. Is there something we can do for them?” Gai was looking at him again, this time with the barest hints of hope. It hurt to be the one to have to snuff them out so Kakashi tried to pick his words carefully.

“I don’t know. I struggled just to be allowed to adopt Naruto and I’m guessing it was the same for Lee.”

Gai nodded, his eyes downcast. “They outright refused to let me adopt a child the first several times I tried to apply. I was persistent and when they realized I wouldn’t take no for an answer they sent me over to meet Lee. I think… I think they were trying to use him to get me to go away. He has no talent for ninjutsu or genjutsu and I did say I wanted to adopt a child attending the academy. They thought meeting him would be the perfect thing to get me to give up the dream of adopting a child.” Tears fell down onto the tile floor, shimmering in the moonlight. “Kakashi, he had nothing. He was nothing. I never want to see a person live like that again.”

Seeing Gai in such a mood was suddenly too much for Kakashi and he desperately tried to change the topic, hoping to distract Gai from his misery. “He seems to be doing very well now.”

“Yes, he truly is the embodiment of youth! He has recovered better than I thought possible and not once has he let his situation get the best of him! I have never met a more resilient person!” Maybe Gai hadn’t, but Kakashi had. He gave the most resilient person he knew a smile.

“I think he fell into just the right hands. You’re doing great Gai.” 

Gai nodded but Kakashi could tell the other man’s depressed mood was slowly returning and his next words confirmed that. “I only wish there was more I could do.”

“We both know it’s impossible. The orphanage is owned by the village bureaucrats, us lowly ninja have no say in how it’s run.” Gai glanced back to the hallway where Naruto and Lee had disappeared. Laughter floated out to the living room, apparently Naruto and Lee had become fast friends. 

Hoping to get Gai’s focus, Kakashi moved his hand to the other man’s shoulder and squeezed. “I know you it’s hard to see it this way, but you’ve already made a huge difference. You’ve turned that boy’s life around. I know he’s grateful, nobody would dare put on that awful spandex without some serious dedication and love.” 

“Do you think that’s what it is? Love?” Gai turned back to Kakashi, his eyes wide.

Kakashi shrugged. “Kids love easy. It’s amazing to watch and even more amazing to experience. And it makes you want to try even harder to give them the best life possible because they put their entire existence into your hands. They’re so fragile and breakable but they trust you not to hurt them. It’s terrifying but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

Kakashi could hear Gai quietly sob and passed him a tissue to clean up with. Once the crying had slowed down Kakashi continued. 

“I know it’s not easy to see people in pain. We’ll do what we can, give money or food to those who need it. Luckily our missions pay well so we can do the bare minimum.” Kakashi had long ago condemned himself to this fate but Gai was only just learning that he would have to live with the knowledge that this was a huge problem he couldn’t fix. 

“I want to do more.” Once again Kakashi felt like he would be crushing the rest of Gai’s hope if he said how he really felt. Instead he gave Gai the more ideal response.

“These things take time. We’ll need more people on our side, we’ll need people who work in administration. And we’ll need the favor of the council.” It was the unfortunate reality of their situation and not one that Kakashi particularly liked. Still, it was better than Kakashi’s rather pessimistic thoughts about how the system was doomed to stay the same no matter how hard they tried. 

“The council can be rather difficult.” People really did underestimate Gai. He wasn’t always overly optimistic, he knew when he was fighting an uphill battle. The biggest difference between him and others was that Gai was willing to keep trying, no matter how impossible the odds. 

“I know,” Kakashi agreed.

“How can it feel so hopeless when all we want to do is help?” Gai took the words right out of his mouth.

Kakashi stood up, offering his hand to Gai. The other man accepted it and was pulled to his feet. They stood, face to face, hands clasped. “We do what we can.” Gai nodded, a silent agreement to their pact. 

As their conversation wound down Gai helped Kakashi clean up the shattered glass, then they both started to prepare breakfast. All the while they quietly plotted with each other, brainstorming ways to help the rest of the children in the orphanage. Their mood stayed dark until the two boys under their care caught a whiff of breakfast and entered the kitchen, ready to eat. For the moment, Kakashi and Gai found that they had to put their ideas aside, but they both had no intention of giving up on their self assigned mission. Little by little, as much as they could, they would help the orphans of the village. 

\---------------

When Naruto hadn’t launched into a rant about his day the second they sat down for dinner, Kakashi knew something was bothering him. The boy was usually so open about his life and seeing him silent was disturbing. Kakashi gave him a few minutes but when Naruto started shifting the food around on his plate the older man decided it was time to step in. If there was one thing Kakashi knew as fact about Naruto, it was that the boy never hesitated to inhale the food that was put in front of him. It was something that Kakashi had tried to teach out of Naruto, with little success, and a constant in the boy’s personality. Seeing him stare the food down but not even give it a taste was enough to have Kakashi ready to pick him up and carry him to the hospital. He found it in himself to not just act on the fear and instead decided to talk to Naruto. Hopefully it would shed some light on this disturbing occurrence. 

“Naruto, what’s wrong? Are you not feeling well?” The way the boy startled made it clear to Kakashi that Naruto hadn’t expected him to pick up on the change in mood.

“Oh! No, I’m ok!” Naruto then made a show of shoveling rice and vegetables into his mouth, but he had only taken a few quick bites before he stopped and once again stared down at his plate. 

Now more sure than ever that something was seriously wrong, Kakashi moved to kneeled down so he would be eye to eye with Naruto in his chair. “Naruto, whatever’s going on you can tell me. Remember I won’t get mad at you, alright?”

“It’s um… well… I kind of got invited to go to this party that Choji’s family is throwing right?” Not quite what Kakashi had been expecting. Still, he would take this over the hypothetical situations his brain had started to concoct. 

“Oh? That’s it? Well, you can go if you want.” The boy lit up and jumped out of his seat to launch himself at Kakashi. The hug dissolved the last of his worries and Kakashi happily returned the squeeze.

“That’s awesome! We need to bring some kind of food to share because it’s a big event and apparently a potluck is a thing where everyone brings some food and we all share and that’s the kind of party that Choji’s family is throwing!” And that worry that had dissolved so quickly was back in full force. Naruto had said we, meaning he wanted Kakashi to go with him. That in itself wasn’t a problem, Kakashi spent lots of time around the other parents of Naruto’s friends. It was more the thought of attending a large social gathering that put Kakashi on edge. 

“We?” Kakashi prayed Naruto would clarify, but he didn’t quite get the answer he wanted.

“Yeah, it’s a family party! If I go you have to go too!” Naruto looked up at him, still being held in Kakashi’s arms. His eyes were wide, his smile bright. But still, the thought of being surrounded by strangers just wouldn’t leave Kakashi’s mind.

“Oh, Naruto, I’m not sure that’s a good idea…”

"But Kashi we have to go!" Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the statement, not convinced at all by Naruto’s insistence. 

"I don't see why I can’t just drop you off and pick you up later." Kakashi put Naruto down as he spoke, then kneeled down to be eye to eye with the boy. It was a habit he had gotten into when he first got Naruto and he continued to do it even months later. Naruto seemed to appreciate being able to see Kakashi’s face at his level and it did wonders for their communication. 

"Because Choji's mom makes the best carrots in the world!" That certainly wasn’t the argument Kakashi had been expecting. 

Kakashi blinked, trying to regain some focus on the original topic but after such a turn all hope for that was lost. "Carrots? Naruto a carrot is a carrot, there can't be better tasting carrots."

"But they were amazing! They had this sauce with them that Choji said was honey but it was also sour but in a good way-"

"That's called tangy,” Kakashi interrupted. 

"-and the carrots were so sweet and crunchy, they were amazing! Please, Kashi we have to go!" Naruto gave Kakashi his best attempt at puppy eyes, and Kakashi hated to admit that they were working. 

“I’m really not sure I’ll be the best company at a party, Naruto.” It was widely known throughout the entire village that the Akimichi clan made the best food around. Getting invited to one of their parties was an excuse to eat until you couldn’t anymore and be merry. To most it was just a good time but the thought of letting his guard down like that felt like a liability to Kakashi. Still, the older man found it hard to say no to his child.

“But Kashi, you have to go! All the parents are gonna be there! Shika’s parents, Kiba’s mom, and Ino’s parents got invited and you did too so you have to come with me!” Suddenly Naruto’s insistence made much more sense. He had already partially convinced Kakashi but now the older man was sold. If Naruto wanted him there because all the other parents would be there then Kakashi would just have to swallow his discomfort with crowds for an evening. 

“When is this get together?” Kakashi tried his best to not let his disappointment in himself for being so easily swayed leak into his voice. 

“Tomorrow night!” Naruto was now hopping up and down with excitement. Despite his trepidation, Kakashi had to admit that seeing Naruto that happy would be worth any unease that the older man might feel. 

“Alright, we’ll go together.”

“Yes! You won’t regret it Kashi! Believe it!”

\---------------

They had only been at the party for a few seconds and Kakashi already regretted it. The gathering wasn’t just a few parents and kids having a quiet get together, it was four clans worth of people all celebrating. All the Nara’s, all the Akimichi’s, all the Yamanaka’s, and all the Inuzuka’s were in attendance. Hoards of people crowded the walkways as Naruto pulled Kakashi along towards the center of the Akimichi compound. Along the way, however, Naruto ran into Choji and immediately darted off to play with his friend, leaving Kakashi alone. 

Despite being a fully grown man, Kakashi couldn’t help but feel a bit lost, standing alone with the shopping bag full of chips he had brought for the potluck. He wanted to stay with Naruto but Kakashi knew he needed to play with his friends. Instead of following the boy Kakashi continued to walk towards the center of the compound, this time sticking to the walls of buildings to try and stay hidden. It didn’t stop the odd glances he got as he went but he was used to the occasional strange look and ignored them. 

When he arrived at the center of the compound he once again reconsidered just grabbing Naruto and leaving. People were milling everywhere, crowds hung around the large grills, the noise was nearly deafening. Kakashi tried to turn on his heel to leave when a tiny hand grabbed his pant leg. He looked down expecting Naruto and instead met the eyes of a young girl. She was obviously a Yamanaka with her light blonde hair and icy blue eyes. 

“You’re the guy that scared our teacher!” While this was the last place Kakashi wanted to be, he was at least happy to see he had made a lasting impression. However, he wasn’t about to let the little girl know that.

“Hm?” After years of practice it was easy enough to fake disinterest. He had half hoped it would get the girl to leave him alone but the way she launched back into her speech clearly meant otherwise.

“Yeah! You came in at the beginning of the year and freaked out Mr. Ito. You were awesome!” Her grin had a sharp edge to it, and Kakashi grew slightly worried about the joy she had taken out of an adult man getting humiliated in front of his class. 

Despite the growing worry, Kakashi couldn’t help but be curious. “You think that was awesome?”

“Definitely. He’s such a wimp, I can’t wait for Iruka-sensei to take over.” Her harsh critique of her teacher was let out in a huff but the words were sincere. Not only did she believe everything she said but she had an ego about how right she was. 

The older man couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if an adult tried to correct her. “I don’t think you’re supposed to call your teachers wimps.”

The little girl rolled her eyes at him. “I don’t really care. If he doesn’t want me to call him one then he shouldn’t act like one. Besides, we both know Iruka-sensei is better than him.” It was likely that she didn’t know who he was but she had to know sassing someone in a shinobi’s uniform wasn’t a good idea. Then again, the confidence most Yamanaka had in their words often caused them to speak before thinking, especially when they were sure they were right. It was something that Shikaku had complained to Kakashi about again and again, but not something Kakashi had experienced often.

Suddenly he was glad she was a child. Disagreeing with a fully trained Yamanaka was dangerous. They sometimes decided to make your secrets their secrets and held that power over you. Kakashi had no doubt that this girl was headed for that path. Until then… 

“Last I checked Iruka isn’t a sensei just yet.” Kakashi grinned as she frowned up at him. He wanted to tease her about how her face would stick like that if she kept it up, just to see her reaction, but she barreled ahead before he got the chance. 

“Yeah, but he will be. Daddy says people like Mr. Ito don’t make it for long when they flinch and stutter and all that. He can’t handle our class,” the girl let loose a snotty laugh, “or any class for that matter. But Iruka-sensei is really good with kids and nothing surprises him and he doesn't let anyone get away with anything.”

That had been the last thing Kakashi had expected from her. Didn’t stuck-up kids like it when the teacher didn’t pay attention to the trouble they caused? He voiced just that. “I thought kids liked being able to get away with things.”

“It doesn’t help me if I can get away with things! I need to practice!” Her eyes lit up and her hands curled into fists. 

He was afraid to ask, but he also just had to know. “Practice?”

“I’m going to be the best kunoichi ever and take over T&I when my daddy retires. That means I need to practice my stealth but how am I supposed to do that if I get away with everything? Iruka-sensei always calls me out when he catches me, that means I know when I’ve snuck something by him.” This put some things into perspective for Kakashi. The little girl in front of him wasn’t just a random Yamanaka. She was practically a princess, daughter of Inoichi Yamanaka, and the next in line for Yamanaka Clan Head. Apparently this also meant that she was being groomed for a T&I leadership position as well. While Kakashi knew it wasn’t any of his business on how other parents raised their kids, it did disturb him slightly. He found himself desperate for a distraction and he knew just the thing to nit-pick about her statements. 

“Hm… next time I see Iruka-sensei I might have to mention that.” The distraction he had hoped for was short-lived, as the girl’s smile turned to a sharp grin. 

“Good, I’ll only improve faster if he’s trying to catch me.” She said it like it was a personal challenge. Kakashi was already beginning to plan on how to warn Iruka when a blonde woman poked her head out of one of the nearby buildings. 

“Ino! Come help us set up the tables please!” 

The girl, Ino, turned to the woman and Kakashi watched as that sharp grin turned into an innocent, gentle smile in under a second. “Coming mom!” She turned back to Kakashi and sent him a wave. “See you around!” Kakashi could only watch as she trotted off to play the part of a perfect daughter.

And just like that the little girl was gone, leaving Kakashi with a much better idea of what kinds of kids were in Naruto’s class. Scary ones. 

After shaking off the strange discussion, he continued on his way this time being much more careful to keep out of the line of sight. Kakashi decided he would stay by the Akimichi personal training fields, where the boys would likely be. He could find a spot in a tree and watch from afar where he was unlikely to be seen. Just before he could escape the center of the compound, however, another person grabbed him. This time he knew exactly who it was. Only Yoshino Nara had a grip that solid. 

“Ah, Kakashi. Perfect timing.” The woman dragged him away and all hope of staying hidden for the night was lost. She was quick to pull him towards a line of trees that created a natural canopy. Lights hung from the low branches and tucked away from the main crowd were some of the parents that Kakashi had already become acquainted with. Chōza was manning a massive grill that had every meat and vegetable imaginable on it while Chizue mixed sauces and spice blends beside him. Shikaku was clearly supposed to be folding napkins, but the tiny pile of napkins that had been folded told Kakashi that the man was hoping he could procrastinate until dinner when it would be too late. Unfortunately for him, Yoshino all but shoved Kakashi into the seat next to the other man and directed him to help with the chore. The dark haired man sent him a pleading look but Kakashi wasn’t about to instill the wrath of the woman who was helping to care for Naruto while he was on missions. Shikaku gave a sigh of defeat as he picked up a napkin to fold. Yoshino took the shopping bag of chips from Kakashi with a huff and set it on a long table that was already overflowing with food. 

The group worked in a pleasant silence for a few minutes, before a question popped into Kakashi’s head. “Why are you throwing this party Chizue? Some kind of occasion?”

“Well, we thought it would be nice to do something for the kids. Each of the clans invited has children who have either recently graduated from the academy or finished their first year. After all that hard work the kids deserve a break and what better way than a nice small get together?”

Kakashi’s eyes widen. He looked back out at the sea of people and remembered the clamorous noise from earlier. “This is small?”

Yoshino cut in from where she was chopping vegetables at an alarming speed. “Oh, this is nothing. You should have seen the party they threw when three of their cousins made jonin. I think at least half the village was there, we ran out of chairs before even half the guests arrived and most of us had to sit on the roofs or on picnic blankets in the training fields.”

“I didn’t account for the branch families bringing distant relations. Next time I’ll be prepared.” Chizue sounded very confident in her words, but Kakashi almost groaned out loud at the thought of a next time. And now, with Naruto being a friend of Choji’s, both he and Kakashi would likely be invited to go.

While Kakashi wallowed in self pity the other parents fell into easy conversation as the evening progressed. Kakashi surprised himself and even added to the discussion at times once he was done sulking. It was strangely refreshing to socialize with the people around him, when they would usually instead talk about their children, and only their children. This was a short lived feeling, however, when Kakashi first heard then saw Naruto barreling towards him. 

“Kashi! Can you summon the pack for me? Kiba didn’t believe me when I told him about them and I want to prove him wrong!” Kakashi looked around at the other adults in the yard, silently asking permission to add eight dogs to the mix of chaos. He only got shrugs in reply. 

When Kakashi nodded in agreement Naruto gave a shout of joy then stood back as Kakashi went through the process of summoning the dogs. Quickly enough Naruto was swarmed by ninken, who were all more than happy to be invited to a party. Most took off towards the other boys but Ūhei stayed back with Naruto. The boy was digging through his pockets and the other adults watched curiously as Kakashi kneeled down to make what was coming easier. After pulling out some loose change, a bunch of candy wrappers, and a crushed paper crane Naruto finally grabbed onto what he was looking for. He spent a few moments fiddling with the object, then ever so carefully wrapped the bandaid around Kakashi’s thumb. There were a few silent seconds as Naruto inspected his work but once he was sure it was on correctly he looked up to Kakashi. 

“That ok, Dad?

“Yeah, thanks Naruto.” The boy smiled and after patting Kakashi’s hand he shot off to play with the pack and his friends. Kakashi stood and was going to get back to work. Instead he looked around to see everyone that had witnessed the scene watching him. For a moment he wondered what he could have possibly done wrong in that situation but Shikaku was quick to disprove that idea.

“That’s the cutest shit I’ve ever seen.” The area was filled with murmurs of agreement.

“He… he started carrying the bandaids with him after I told him about summoning. Apparently he doesn’t like the idea of me getting hurt.”

“That makes two of us.” 

“Three of us.” Another round of voices agreeing to the statement had Kakashi smiling. Yoshino motioned back to Kakashi’s seat and he took it, happy when the conversation shifted back to the mundane. He didn’t miss the firm pats on the back that Shikaku gave him as the other man made his escape, the finished pile of napkins now in front of Kakashi. It was his way of giving Kakashi his approval and something about receiving it made Kakashi proud of himself. For the first time since adopting Naruto it truly felt like he was succeeding in being a good parent. 

The night continued and Kakashi found himself slowly relaxing. It was easier knowing he was surrounded by ninja, rather than civilians, as he knew that these people weren’t foolish enough to lower their guard entirely. The boys would come visit their parents every so often, asking when dinner would be ready, stealing snacks from the large tables, begging for the shinobi around to perform complicated jutsus just for their entertainment. 

When dinner finally arrived Kakashi found that the tables were over crowded with people. Yoshino offered him a picnic blanket to sit on in exchange for watching after the boys while they ate. Kakashi happily agreed and herded the four children back to the private training fields once they had all collected their food. Naruto, Kiba, and Choji all ate at alarming speeds, then dashed off to play once more. Kakashi stayed on the picnic blanket along with Shikamaru, where the boy was picking at his dinner.

“I wanted to thank you.” Kakashi turned to look at the boy that had just spoken, but Shikamaru was slouched over his plate, pushing vegetables around with his chopsticks.

“For what, exactly?” The older man had an idea at what Shikamaru was thanking him for, but he didn’t want to assume anything. Even though Kakashi didn’t know the boy terribly well, he knew from Yoshino’s exasperated stories that Shikamaru was smart beyond his years. Kakashi had no doubt that the boy would grow up to be as talented as his father was. Shikamaru’s future would be full of strategy and battle plans, tactical missions and military operations. Until then, Shikamaru seemed to focus on his friends, learning their in’s and out’s. It sometimes made Kakashi wonder if Shikamaru knew Naruto better than he did. 

The boy had taken his time to respond to Kakashi’s question, but when he finally did he met Kakashi’s eye. “For adopting Naruto, obviously. You already knew that, you didn’t have to ask.”

Kakashi responded with a nod before replying. “Just wanted to make sure. But why thank me now and not earlier?” 

“Because I didn’t trust you yet.” This took Kakashi by surprise. Children, even children of shinobi, were often overly trusting until they were taught to be suspicious later in life. For Shikamaru to be so cautious when he was so young was unexpected. Then again, Kakashi had long ago realized that children never reacted the way you thought they would.

“Oh?” Kakashi asked, hoping for elaboration.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. “How was I supposed to know you would be different from the others? Not many people were kind to Naruto, statistical chance meant I couldn’t give you the benefit of the doubt. There was a much higher likelihood that you had ulterior motives.”

Kakashi grinned at the entirely accurate assessment. “So what changed your mind?”

“You’re here.” Once again, Shikamaru had said the unexpected. Kakashi knew that he wasn’t so transparent that it was obvious to anyone that he didn’t want to be here. He was learning that Shikamaru wasn’t your average kid though. 

“And?”

The boy let out an annoyed sigh before speaking. “You’ll notice there are a lot of civilians here but almost no jonin. Sure, shinobi like to party but they do it in controlled environments. This place is the least controlled environment possible for anyone that isn’t an Akimichi. You don’t know the area that well and there are tons of people you’ve never met. Recipe for disaster for any highly trained shinobi. Notice all the ninja are sticking with people they know? Backs to the walls, three different exits at least. And you’re the worst out of all of them. You profile everyone who crosses your path, you never let strangers get behind you. This place must be your personal hell with how crowded it is. But you’re here and the only person that could convince you to come would be Naruto. For you to put aside both your training and your precautions to come to this party means that you really do care for him and aren’t just faking.” 

“I do care for him. Very much.” Kakashi smiled as he watched Naruto get chased by hyperactive dogs and Kiba. Choji was sitting a distance away with Bull, the dog happily accepting scratches on the chin. Shikamaru watched his friends play as well, before nodding in agreement. 

“Good. So do I.” The two went back to their food, Kakashi picking away at his plate with quick movements. Despite the dark and the general lack of people, he still preferred to keep his face hidden. Shikamaru kept his eyes on his own plate, out of respect or sheer boredom, Kakashi couldn’t be sure.

After a few minutes, Kakashi finally broke the silence that had fallen between them. “I have a question for you, Shikamaru.”

The boy didn’t look up. “Yeah?” His tone was put out, as if he was already dreading the conversation to come.

“What did you see in Naruto that made you want to be his friend? You must have caught on pretty quickly that something about him was different, that people didn’t like him for a reason. What made you ignore what everyone else was saying?” 

“Oh please, listening to a bunch of idiots is a waste of time.” When Shikamaru didn’t go on, Kakashi decided to ask his initial question again. 

“You didn’t answer my question. What made you want to be Naruto’s friend?” The boy stayed silent for a moment, then put his chopsticks down. He turned to Kakashi and the bored expression was replaced with full seriousness. For a few seconds, the boy looked exactly like Yoshino the day she had demanded that Kakashi take on the full responsibility of being a father. 

“He defended someone else, even though he knew he would be bullied in place of that person. For someone who is so disliked to take on even more pain just to protect someone he doesn’t know… well, I was curious what type of a guy he was.” Kakashi understood this, he would want to learn more about such a person as well. 

“And what did you find?”

This earned another eye roll from Shikamaru. “He’s a moron who can’t tell an earth jutsu from a fire jutsu.” The boy paused to look back out into the training field. Naruto had noticed that Choji wasn’t playing with the rest of the group and had run over to check on the other boy. They conversed for a moment before Naruto called out to Kiba and quickly enough the three boys were sitting on the ground playing a game that didn’t require them to run around. Shikamaru gestured to the group, then spoke again. “But he’s also very kind with a strong moral compass. Not many people have that, or if they do they brag about how great they are for it. Naruto is humble about it because he’s never known another way to act. And with you raising him there’s very little chance of that changing.”

Kakashi realized what was being implied and winced. “You’re holding me to a rather high standard.” It was the standard of a child, but a very smart child. There was also a sneaking suspicion that both Yoshino and Shikaku were also holding Kakashi to that standard, making him even more worried.

“Yeah, but I know you won’t let me down. I had the bar set so high for you and you still somehow managed to impress me.” Shikamaru was so confident in his assessment of Kakashi that the man couldn’t find it in himself to disagree. 

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Good, that’s how it was intended.”

Shikamaru picked up his chopsticks and began to eat again, effectively ending the conversation. 

The party continued well into the night but anyone with young children left an hour after dinner. Naruto had protested leaving, even as his eyes drifted shut. As Kakashi walked them both home, Naruto in his arms, he reflected back on the night. The compliments about how well he was taking care of Naruto had been well received, but Kakashi couldn’t help but think that they had all missed something. Shikamaru had stated that Kakashi was showing his dedication for Naruto by going to the party. The boy had been half right. Nobody had mentioned that Kakashi himself had changed. Before adopting Naruto, Kakashi would have never been able to even think about relaxing around others like he had tonight. Before adopting Naruto, Kakashi had been closed off and cold. Before adopting Naruto, Kakashi was nothing but a tool to be used by the village. Maybe people didn’t see it because Kakashi chose to keep himself distant previously, but he couldn’t hide it from himself. The year had changed Kakashi entirely. There was finally light in his life again. He had seen Naruto heal and, without his knowledge, begun to heal as well.


	5. Interlude: Like Father, Like Son

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short little interlude to help segue into the next chapter, where there will be a time skip. I will actually probably post the next full chapter some time this weekend because I am just so excited to get to it!

When she decided to follow him, it was spur of the moment decision. Her own child had been telling her tales of his friends' adventures and there was always one name that came up more than others.  _ Naruto did this, Naruto said that, Naruto, Naruto Naruto.  _ If it were anyone else, Tsume would be happy to see her son so loyal. However, because it was that boy… she was unsure. 

The other parents of Kiba’s friends had long since come around. Yoshino sometimes cared for the boy while Kakashi was on missions, Chizue insisted on feeding Naruto every time she saw him. Even their husbands were fond of the boy. It had been a year since Kakashi had approached them to ask that their children have a sleepover with Naruto and in that year Naruto had somehow won the hearts of all the adults in his life. All except Tsume. 

She was hesitant and felt she had every reason to be. After all, having a demon sealed inside of you wasn’t as simple as some marks on the skin. Her instincts and past experiences told her that the boy was dangerous. Still, she couldn’t fight with facts. As far as she knew, Naruto had been nothing but decent. He had even, for the most part, stopped pranking people. But despite all of this, she couldn’t help but to hold onto her suspicions. 

Tsume watched from a rooftop near the academy as the boy began to walk home alone. Kiba was staying after school for some tutoring with an older student and, if she remembered what Kiba told her correctly, one of Kakashi’s friends was looking after Naruto for the week. From her hiding spot she watched the boy trek into the heart of the village, carefully avoiding the busier roads. She jumped from rooftop to rooftop, followed closely by her ninken Kuromaru. They tracked the boy as he wove in and out of alleys, more often than not getting ahead of him with how predictable he was. It was in one of those moments that they lost the boy. He hadn’t exited the tiny path between buildings. The duo waited for a few minutes, then finally crept closer to the ledge of the building to investigate. 

To say the scene surprised her would be an understatement. Below them was Naruto, kneeling next to a dumpster where he was quietly speaking to something. A breeze brought the scent of trash and sweat up to Tsume along with something else. Cat. Naruto was trying to coax a cat out from behind a trash bin. The boy continued to speak as he reached for his bag, digging around until he pulled out a plastic container. He popped the lid off and held it out. The cat slowly emerged from behind the dumpster and Tsume felt her heart go out to the animal. It’s fur was patchy, it’s face caked in dirt. Even from a distance Tsume could tell it had mange. Naruto seemed unbothered by its appearance, instead his eyes lit up as the animal crept closer to him. After a short standoff, hunger finally pushed the cat to go for the container of food in Naruto’s hand. 

Tsume knew that this moment was causing a shift in her view of the boy. Despite wanting desperately to hold onto her grudge, she just couldn’t do it. She couldn’t hate or even dislike someone that took time out of their day to help an animal. Not only did Naruto stop, but he had clearly either saved food from his lunch or taken extra with him. The little boy who Tsume wanted to hate had not only met this cat before but had been considerate enough to bring the cat some of his own food. 

A switch was flipped. It had taken spying on the boy but Tsume finally saw in Naruto what everyone else did. Kindness. It was so pure and untainted, the woman almost wondered how it was even possible. She knew the past Naruto had, she knew the hardships he had faced. How had such a hurt boy remained kind after all that? 

She looked down with her new perspective and saw something else. There was a resemblance there that Tsume had never wanted to admit to herself, a resemblance to the 4th Hokage. It wasn’t so much in the hair or the eyes, as many people would claim, but rather the way Naruto smiled down at the cat. That smile was the 4th’s and his son carried it with him. 

Tsume remembered she had first received that smile. It had been after a particularly difficult mission, one that had left her team injured and drained. She was left to turn in the mission report as the rest of the team had needed to go to the hospital. The 4th Hokage, when seeing the state she was in, gave her that smile and offered her a cup of tea and half his lunch. They had eaten in the mission room, discussion flowing easily and Tsume left feeling energized once more. It was those little moments of kindness that defined the 4th Hokage and it seemed it would be that kindness that defined Naruto as well. 

By the time Tsume was pulled from her thoughts Naruto was putting the container down for the cat to finish eating while he carried on his way back home. The second he was out of sight Tsume silently jumped down from the roof. She was happy to see that the food was distracting the cat, it allowed her to reach out and grab it by the scruff before it could get away. Carefully she pressed a few pressure points on the cat and the animal relaxed in her hold. Later, Tsume would drop off it with Hana at the vet clinic for care, but at the moment the older woman felt the need to continue following Naruto. If there were going to be more moments like this one she wanted to know. What if the kindness was extended to a dog next time? She didn’t want to miss seeing that. 

Kuromaru gave the cat a sideways glare when Tsume hopped back up on the roof but a single growl from the woman had him focusing on their mission again. They jumped a few roofs over and were surprised to find Naruto stopped once more. This time, however, it wasn’t because of his generous heart as Tsume had hoped. Instead, there were four adult men surrounding him, shouting names and slurs down at Naruto. The boy was searching desperately for a way to escape but there was none. Even though he was training to be a ninja and these men were clearly civilians, it was obvious who would come out on top in a fight. Naruto seemed to know this as well, there was no ego in his expression, only fear. 

It wasn’t a difficult decision for either woman or dog. They lunged off the building, landing without a sound between the men and the boy. One of the brutes tripped over themselves trying to back away while the others jumped away and stumbled. Kuromaru bared his teeth at the men and they flinched. At least they weren’t stupid enough to not be afraid of a 200 pound dog. 

“Kuromaru, please walk Naruto home. I’ll take care of the trash.” Kuromaru immediately followed his order and began ushering the boy away with his nose. For a moment, Naruto looked like he was going to protest leaving her alone with the men, but when he saw the cat in Tsume’s arms he paused to blink in confusion. Seeing his opportunity, Kuromaru shoved the boy away from the group, then encouraged Naruto into a jog. They disappeared off the street in seconds, leaving Tsume with the four dead men walking. 

“Hey, lady! What’s the big idea? Don’t you know what that boy is? You let him get away!” One of the talking pieces of filth motioned down the street, then turned to sneer at her. “Looks like we’ll just have to make do. Who’s ready to have some fun boys?” 

The other men began moving closer, curing their hands into fists, sneers twisting their faces. Tsume didn’t move other than to give them a toothy grin.

“Oh, I don’t think you shits will have any fun, but I will.” The first two men went down with a kick to the chest each. They flew through the air and landed just where Tsume had intended, on top of a dumpster. The next two had slowed down, but the hesitation was only an advantage for an advanced shinobi. Tsume threw her body weight at one of the men and she knocked him to the ground with a hard crack of the man’s skull. The last man ran at her at full speed, obviously thinking she was distracted from her position kneeling on the ground. She only had to swiftly extend a leg from where she was crouched, causing him to trip over it and go tumbling head over ass.

And just as quickly as it had started, it was over. It wasn’t close to a fair fight. After all, what were four civilians to a tokubetsu jonin? Tsume didn’t even have to set the cat down and now all four men were lying around in various states of consciousness. She moved closer to the ring leader and stood over him, one foot pushing onto his chest. A few flakes of dead skin from the cat slowly drifted onto his face, much to Tsume’s delight. 

“Are you listening, scum? I’ll only say it once.” The man gave her a frantic nod. His entire body was shaking, his eyes wide with alarm. Tsume pressed her foot down harder, just to make sure her words were taken seriously. “Good. Now, I want you to understand something. What just happened here was a warning. See how beat up you got from a warning? Imagine what happens if I get serious. Don’t even think about hurting Naruto Uzumaki again. He is under my protection.” 

Before the man could reply she stepped away, digging her heel in his chest as she turned. Tsume had no interest in groveling and certainly didn’t have time to deal with someone so low. She was much more interested in catching up with Naruto, just to see how all of this ended. 

It didn’t take her long to find Kuromaru and Naruto, as they had just reached Kakashi’s apartment. Tsume hung back in the shadows while Naruto went to open the door, only for it to fly open to reveal Gai. The man was frantic and immediately began to lecture Naruto. However, the large dog pressed against Naruto’s side brought the spandex clad man to a halt.

“Oh, hello Kuromaru! What are you doing here tonight, my fine canine friend?” Kuromaru shook his head at Gai, not wanting to encourage another speech. 

Tsume decided to step in to save her companion from such a terrible fate. “I sent him along with Naruto.”

“Tsume! Lovely to see you! But I do have to ask, what exactly is going on?” She paused for a moment, then remembered the bundle of mange she held in her arms. It was the perfect excuse to avoid telling Gai that she had been following Naruto.

“Naruto was helping me hunt down this cat. He came to me about this stray because Kiba told him I know a lot about animals. We were late because the cat was stubborn and didn’t want to come out. When I realized what time it was I sent Naruto and Kuromaru ahead while I stayed behind to grab it. Heading over to Hana’s clinic now to drop it off, see that it gets some proper care.” Naruto was looking up at her in awe and Gai was crying ‘manly’ tears. Tsume ignored both of them and motioned for Kuromaru to follow her. Before either person could reply to her statement she took off towards the clinic, leaving them behind within seconds. Still, she couldn’t help the smile that played on her lips, one she wore for the rest of the evening. 

That night Tsume thought back over the events of her afternoon while sipping a cup of tea. It wasn’t every day she changed her mind but today a six year old boy had convinced her without even speaking a word. He was the perfect mirror image of the 4th Hokage but there was something more. That dedication, that need to do the right thing, Tsume had seen that in someone else. Memories of Kakashi drifted into her mind. He had been so insistent that Naruto have a happy childhood, to the point that he was willing to stand up to her. He took everything in stride, working to catch Naruto up in school and struggling to fight Naruto’s nightmares with him. Kiba had relayed many stories about Kakashi’s raising of Naruto, she knew of the battles those two had faced together. And yet, they both came out smiling, they both continued with their self assigned mission to help others along the way. 

Tsume leaned back in her chair, a hand going to pet Kuromaru’s head. She looked out the window into the night sky and realized that the stars shined just a bit brighter tonight, knowing what she did. There was kindness in the village again, pure kindness. 


	6. Guide Through the Dark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was way too excited to post this chapter to wait any longer! Some of these sections have been written since I first thought of this story so it's really cool to see them finally finished. I might try and keep up the weekly update schedule, but if not I'll still be updating every two weeks!

It was a ninja village so news traveled impossibly fast. The entire Uchiha clan, wiped out in a singular night by one of their own. Most were still reeling in shock but Kakashi knew he couldn’t stand still. The only member of the clan to survive the massacre had been thrown into the orphanage and Kakashi was determined to get him out in record time. He had just dropped Naruto off at school, early even, and immediately ran to the Hokage’s office. 

The guards outside the door tried to stop him but Kakashi wasn’t in the mood to deal with them. He pushed his way into the office, feeling manic. “Lord Hokage, I need to speak with you right away.”

The older man looked up, a frown quickly growing on his face. “Kakashi, I’m in a meeting at the moment. You and I can talk later.”

“Sir, this can’t wait. It’s about Sasuke. I need your permission to adopt him.” Kakashi stormed over to the desk, slamming his hands down on the surface. He met the Hokage’s eyes, hoping to convey just how serious this situation was. In response Kakashi only got a thoughtful look. 

“That’s very interesting. Iruka and I were just having a conversation about who should have custody.” Kakashi took the chance to turn around, the tunnel vision that had plagued him since he heard the news finally wearing off. The Hokage’s office was oddly empty, in the same way it was when Kakashi asked to adopt Naruto. The chair across from the Hokage was occupied by Iruka, who looked much too calm about this situation for Kakashi’s taste. If he didn’t know better he would think the two were just having a chat over tea, rather than determining the fate of a hurt boy. 

“Hello again.” Iruka had the audacity to wave.

“Are you two even taking this seriously? We need to get Sasuke out of the orphanage right now, it's the worst place for a traumatized child to be.” The words were thrown out with a growl and a glare sent towards the Hokage. 

The Hokage sent Kakashi a small grimace before replying to his aggressive statement. “We understand your feelings on the orphanage Kakashi, but there is also quite a bit of planning involved in this. The council would like-”

“I don’t give a damn what the council wants!” The second he raised his voice Kakashi was surrounded by three ANBU agents.

“Kakashi Hatake, stand down.” The loud, firm command from the Hokage brought Kakashi back to his senses and he gave the older man a deep bow. There were a few tense moments but eventually a muttered “You lot make me feel old,” broke the silence. With a wave of his hand the Hokage dismissed the ANBU agents and motioned for Kakashi to stand back up. Even after he pulled himself out of the bow Kakashi kept his head down, knowing that his show of emotions had likely ruined his chance to adopt Sasuke.

The Hokage sat down with a sigh, and just from the tone of the sigh Kakashi could tell he was shaking his head as well. “I know you want to help Kakashi, you really are a kind man. But I don’t think Sasuke would do well in your home.”

Kakashi looked up and opened his mouth to protest but the Hokage cut him off before he could get a word out. “Let me finish. Now, I don’t think that boy would do well in your home because you already have Naruto. The last thing Sasuke needs right now is competition and that somewhat frantic energy surrounding him. He needs calm and stability. That’s why I’m more inclined to agree with Iruka’s suggestion.”

“And what would that be, exactly?” 

“I’ve offered to adopt Sasuke.” Kakashi turned sharply to the younger man. Iruka’s face was set in hard lines, determined and proud. It put Kakashi on edge. 

The silver haired man turned back to their leader, ready to put up a fight. His only hope now was to be as stubborn as possible. “Sir, I have to protest. Iruka doesn’t have any experience when it comes to adopting a kid. I know he’s a teacher but it’s different when there’s a kid living in your home.” 

Rather than letting the Hokage respond, Iruka stood up to meet Kakashi eye to eye. “I know that. But I also know that Sasuke is going to need a lot of hands on care and attention. You leave the village far too often on missions to be able to provide that. I also can’t help but feel like Sasuke is a bit of a kindred soul. He and I both lost our families at a young age. I’m hoping I can use my experience to guide him. Maybe I can help him avoid some of the pain that I went through.” Iruka’s gaze turned distant and it was clear he meant every word of what he said. It surprised Kakashi when the man turned back to him and gave him a watery smile.

“Besides Kakashi, you don’t have anyone to blame but yourself. I was inspired by you to do this. If I can give Sasuke a chance at a better life I’m going to do it.” The smile grew into a grin, even as tears began to form in the corner of the younger man’s eyes. Kakashi saw something in that grin, something that reminded him of tragedy and love and hope for a bright future all wrapped into a single smile. He wanted to chase that expression, see what it could become, but the other man was already wiping away the tears and pulling himself together. 

The Hokage took that as his cue to enter the conversation once more. “I know it can be hard to give up control, Kakashi, but I do feel Iruka is the best choice for this. I’m willing to go up against the council to help him bring Sasuke home by the end of the day. I have warned Iruka of the difficulties of adopting a traumatized child and he understands the responsibilities.”

“Sir-”

“My decision is final.” The tone left no room for arguments. Sasuke was going to be adopted by Iruka. Kakashi couldn’t stop the twinge of regret that ran down his spine. It almost felt like he had failed a mission he hadn’t even been able to accept. 

“I understand sir.” Kakashi gave the man another bow and was ready to leave when the older man called out to him. 

“Hold on a second Kakashi. I would like to speak to you alone. Iruka, you’re dismissed. We’ll talk later to make arrangements.”

Iruka bowed and quickly left. Kakashi turned to the older man, still feeling defiant. When the Hokage pulled out a very familiar scroll, however, Kakashi immediately dropped his attitude and kneeled on one knee, his fist propping him up, and his head lowered. The scroll was known by all ANBU and Kakashi felt the wards go up around the office moments later. They would block all signs of life coming from the room. It was a sign of a mission and something that Kakashi dreaded seeing. 

“Now then, I need to have a very serious discussion with you. In light of the Uchiha massacre I am officially removing you from the ranks of the ANBU. I feel that I should have listened to Gai years ago when he told me that kind people are not suited for the ANBU.” To say he was surprised was an understatement. Not many were retired from ANBU. The promotion to the black ops usually was accepted as an honorable death sentence. Being retired after servicing and surviving for years was odd to say the least. But at the same time, it was almost a relief. 

“What are my orders now, sir?” Kakashi tried to pose the question as calmly as possible, but he worried nonetheless. There wasn’t a job more dangerous than ANBU that he knew of, but if there was one Kakashi didn’t doubt he would qualify. 

“I’m thinking you might like a change in scenery. You’ll make a good jonin sensei Kakashi. It’ll be good for you to teach and it’ll help you stay close to home, give you more time to spend with Naruto. I’m sure he’ll enjoy that.” Kakashi gave a small smile and nod. No doubt the boy would be ecstatic to learn that Kakashi wouldn’t be gone as often. 

“Do you have any questions?” The Hokage’s voice was kind and when Kakashi stood, the man was smiling at him. 

Kakashi returned the smile. “No sir.”

“Good, now get out of here. I have to deal with the council before they get any ideas about Sasuke.” Kakashi felt the wards drop around him and, in a fit of mischief, jumped over the old man’s desk to leave through the window, rather than the door. Behind him he could hear the Hokage cursing and Kakashi let out a singular laugh. It didn’t do much to lift the sorrow at the loss of an entire clan but it helped Kakashi reset enough to be able to face the world. 

\---------------

The day dragged by slowly. Iruka’s students were a disaster with most of the girls in the class in a panic and with the boys sulking about how much attention Sasuke was getting without even being in the room. Any other time Iruka would have taken everyone outside to wear them out but today he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. There was too much nervous energy in the room and Iruka couldn’t help but feel the effects. He sat the kids down, gave them a very watered down version of what happened and asked them to be kind when Sasuke returned to class. Most of them went quiet, trying to absorb what was likely their first experience with death. Some, Shikamaru and surprisingly Hinata, sat up straighter, meeting Iruka’s eyes with concerned looks. They had questions but Iruka simply couldn’t answer them. He knew that later each of their parents would likely sit down with their children and give them a different story, possibly one that was more detailed. Iruka felt that it wasn’t his place, but he knew he would be dodging questions from nosy students until the end of the day regardless.

He also couldn’t help but be distracted. After the rather tense discussion with both the Hokage and Kakashi, Iruka was now positive that all eyes would be on him for the next few months. This wasn’t just village gossip, this was a headline caked in blood. And at the center of it all was Sasuke. Just thinking about it made Iruka’s stomach tighten, even as his determination grew. He would do this, if only to protect the boy from being used by the council, as the Hokage had inferred. 

Class dragged on and the students grew more restless. Those that hadn’t grown melancholy from the morbid news had decided to bury their feelings and act out. Kiba was particularly difficult and earned himself a week's worth of detention as a result. By the end of the day the entire student body was exhausted but still found the energy to bolt out of the room, ready for a distraction from the somber mood that had been laid over them. Iruka, however, got no reprieve. He had received a message during lunch to go to the Hokage’s office the second class was over. There was more news on Sasuke’s case that he needed to know before adopting the boy. 

If Iruka had any hope for good news, it was crushed when he entered the office. The room was swarmed with ANBU agents and T&I officials. The council members sat off to the side, fuming silently amongst themselves. 

“Iruka, good. I’m glad you could make it. Please, take a seat.” The Hokage addressed him the moment he stepped inside and Iruka realized they must have been waiting for him. Immediately Iruka sat down in the chair offered to him, Inoichi Yamanaka sitting next to him. The Hokage was staring out the window, watching the village as the sun began to set.

“There has been some insight into the massacre. Sasuke Uchiha woke up at 10:13 this morning. By 11 AM he was able to give us a statement on what happened,” Inoichi informed the room, his voice grave. 

“He told us that Itachi Uchiha was the responsible party. Itachi told Sasuke that he did it as a show of skill and that he left Sasuke alive so that the boy could grow up to be the ultimate test of his abilities,” the blonde man continued.

The thought that another person, someone Sasuke had spoken so highly of, would say that to a little boy was almost impossible for Iruka to believe. “What?”

“Sasuke stated that his brother told him to foster his hate and to grow powerful so that he would be an equal match for Itachi.” Inoichi didn’t seem entirely unaffected, if the slight wrinkle of his nose was anything to go by. Still, Iruka knew that the man wasn’t trying to hide his tells and could switch to a blank expression whenever he pleased. 

“That’s… that’s barbaric.” There were a few sounds of agreement from the other people in the room at Iruka’s words.

The Hokage nodded, still not turning from the window. “It’s inhuman and cruel, that much is certain. Still, we can not forget what is at stake. Sasuke will need to be placed in Iruka’s care immediately to begin healing.”

Finally one of the council members stood up. She was an older woman with an overall superior-than-thou attitude. Iruka immediately disliked her. “The council has already stated that we wish for Sasuke to be placed under the care of the village, and more specifically, the council.”

“So you want him to be alone? Completely alone? After his entire family was slaughtered?” Iruka always knew that the council were cold hearted but this had to be a new low, even for them. 

“We do not think that being cared for by a stranger would benefit the boy.” This time it was an older man speaking. Again, Iruka disliked him on principle.    


“Well, I guess we’re going to have to disagree. Sasuke needs stability right now and putting him in the orphanage would only make things worse.” From the corner of his eye Iruka could see Inoichi nodding along with his statement. It was good to know that someone was on his side, besides the Hokage.

“We were not suggesting placing him in the orphanage. We thought it would be best for him to return to an environment he was familiar with.” The words hit Iruka like a sword to the heart. 

Iruka vividly remembered the months after his parents death. Memories of gut wrenching loneliness swarmed his mind, but his imagination put himself in his family home rather than the apartment he had been put into. He imagined ghosts of his loved ones walking alongside him as he cooked dinner alone, he saw shadows of his parents creep through the hallways as he walked to his bedroom, he remembered sleepless nights worsened by the fact that he truly couldn’t escape his reality due to the familiarity of his house. Then he imagined Sasuke in that same position and the damn to his anger broke. Iruka stood up in a flash, whipping around to face the council members.

“You want to send him home? How dare you! You say you’re doing what's best for him but what you’re suggesting will kill him! Nobody can survive living in the house where their parents were murdered! It wouldn’t just be cruel to put him back there, it would be a death sentence!” The council, likely never having been yelled at by someone so low ranking, stared at Iruka as if he had grown a second head. Then again, Iruka was panting heavily after his outburst, sweat building up on his temples, his hair falling out of his ponytail. Even he had to admit, he likely looked a bit deranged. 

The Hokage finally turned around and looked at the people in the room. His eyes met Iruka’s and he let out a sigh. “Iruka, sit down.”

Silence filled the room as the Hokage surveyed it. When he was done he nodded, seemingly to himself, before pulling out his pipe for a smoke. “While I value the opinions of my council, I feel I agree more with Iruka at this time. Sasuke will be placed in his care.” The words were casual but the tone firm. There would be no arguing with the Hokage, his decision was final. 

Many in the room took this as a dismissal, the council members being the first ones to leave. A few of the ANBU agents and T&I officials filled out as well until only a handful remained. Once the room had been partially cleared out, those who remained briefed Iruka on everything he would need to know about what had happened and about Sasuke’s status. By the end of it Iruka felt sick to his stomach but also had some idea of what he was getting himself into. Despite the gruesome details, he remained firm in his decision and by the end of the night he had signed the adoption papers. 

He was advised to pick Sasuke up that very evening and take a few days off to get the boy comfortable. Both Inoichi and the Hokage agreed that Iruka should take Sasuke to school on Friday to see how he handled being in class. Iruka tried to protest this but the two men argued that it would be good to give Sasuke a solid schedule. They did not let Iruka leave until he had agreed to their terms, but Iruka only agreed because he would be given full judgement on the matter of Sasuke’s progress. If Iruka thought that attending classes wasn’t helping Sasuke then he would be removed from them until Iruka saw fit. 

Once his briefing was over, Iruka made his way over to the orphanage where Sasuke was staying for the time being. When he arrived he forced himself to ignore the rundown state of the place. It was easy enough to write off, after all the academy wasn’t exactly in the best condition. It was harder to make excuses for the receptionist, however.

“What do you want?” Her tone was sharp and bitter. If Iruka were a lesser man, he would have recoiled. Instead, he stood up straighter, meeting her rude attitude with pure stubbornness. 

“I’m here to pick up Sasuke Uchiha.”

She nodded in understanding but didn’t move from her seat or even look up at Iruka. “Oh, that boy. He was supposed to be removed from our care after he woke up. You’re late.”

“It took the council and Hokage a while to come to an agreement about how his case should be handled, I’m sorry about that.” Mention of the Hokage finally pushed her into action. She stood up with a huff and disappeared behind a set of double doors. A moment later she returned, her lips twisted into a deep frown. 

“Apparently the boy’s being difficult. Come with me.” Iruka followed her deep into the facility, silently fuming at her back. The further into the building they went, the more he saw and the more disgusted he was with the place. Mold crept up the walls, the cracks in the floor were big enough to trip over, groups of children ran around completely unattended. It was every teacher's nightmare. 

They continued to make their way through the building, only coming to a stop at a wooden door with peeling paint. As far as Iruka could tell, none of the other rooms in the wing were occupied. “In here. For some reason the kid refuses to move. Have him out of here before nine.” The receptionist didn’t wait for a response. She walked away without another word, leaving Iruka with only the old door as company. Worry and anger settled like rocks in his stomach. They just let anyone walk in then leave them in the orphanage alone? What was wrong with these people? Iruka had heard plenty of stories from Kakashi and some of the other teachers who had orphans in their classes but he had always assumed that they were all being slightly over protective. Now he realized he should have taken them more seriously. 

Not wanting to leave Sasuke in this place for any longer than necessary, Iruka steeled himself and knocked on the door. He waited for a response for a few minutes but when nothing happened he knocked again. Once again, no response came. Beginning to think that the woman had led him to the wrong door, Iruka went inside and was greeted with a tiny, cramped room. It had a nightstand, a singular overhead light that had been left on, and a tiny bed on a cheap metal frame. Sasuke was sitting on the edge of the bed, unmoving. 

Immediately Iruka stepped forward to kneel in front of Sasuke. The boy was pale, his skin almost gray from lack of color. His hair was greasy from sweat but small tremors shook him as if he were cold. The most concerning detail was his eyes. They were distant and glazed over, all the life that might have filled them previously had been drained away. While the boy’s appearance was alarming it was his eyes that struck fear into Iruka. The dull cloudiness made Sasuke look like a shell of his previous self. Iruka understood what all this meant, but the realization almost made him sick. Sasuke was in shock and he had been left completely alone. He had been ignored, then treated like an inconvenience once Iruka reminded the staff of his existence. Iruka promised himself that he would speak to the Hokage about the orphanage later. In the meantime, he desperately wanted to get his new charge out of the building as soon as possible. 

“Sasuke? It’s Iruka, your teacher. I’ve been given permission to adopt you.” The boy didn’t move. He continued to stare right through Iruka, as if the man wasn’t there at all. 

“I have a bedroom set up for you already. It’s a guest bedroom, but we’ll bring your things in, make it your own. Does that sound good?” There was no reply, but Iruka was beginning to expect that. Instead of pushing for a reply, Iruka continued to talk. He described his apartment and the shops and restaurants around it. He told Sasuke about Anko, as she would likely make an appearance from time to time. And even though he knew Sasuke wasn’t listening, he hoped just hearing a calm voice would be enough to pull Sasuke out of the place he was trapped. 

He was just starting to talk about one of his neighbors who always brought Iruka homemade sweets during holidays when Sasuke blinked at him. Iruka went silent as the boy’s face slowly shifted from blank to confused. 

“Iruka-sensei?” Sasuke’s voice cracked from strain. If Iruka remembered the briefing correctly, it was Sasuke’s screams that alerted the authorities about the massacre. The older man made a mental note to make some tea with honey in it for Sasuke after he got some rest. 

“Hello Sasuke.” Iruka gave the boy a soft smile. 

“What…” Sasuke didn’t seem to have the energy to elaborate further but it was easy enough to guess what he was asking.

“I’ve been given permission to adopt you. I’m here to take you back with me to my apartment.” 

“Hm…” Sasuke’s eyes began to drift shut and Iruka knew he needed to get the boy out of the orphanage so he could rest. 

“Sasuke, would it be alright if I picked you up and carried you? I’ll be able to get us back to the apartment a lot faster that way.” The boy tilted his head downward slightly and Iruka took that as a nod. He turned so his back was to Sasuke, hoping the boy would understand it as an invitation for a piggy back ride. Sasuke hesitated for a moment, but soon enough arms were wrapped around Iruka’s shoulders.

Iruka didn’t bother to go out the front door of the orphanage and instead crept out an emergency exit then took off into the night. Sasuke held on as best he could but Iruka could feel the boy’s grip becoming slack and was overjoyed when they made it back to the apartment without Sasuke falling off his back. That didn’t stop the boy from falling asleep before Iruka even had the door open though. It took a bit of careful twisting and turning to get his keys out of his pockets without letting go of Sasuke. Luckily, the front door was his only obstacle and Iruka was able to easily walk Sasuke to his new bedroom once they were inside. 

He laid the boy down carefully, then did his best to tuck him in. Kakashi’s comments about Iruka not knowing how to raise a child rung through his head as he fumbled with the blankets, but Iruka did his best to ignore them. It was true, he had never raised a child but he had dealt with his fair share of trauma. Sasuke deserved a chance at a life without being haunted by his past. Iruka knew how to fight those ghosts. Maybe he wouldn’t be the best father, but he would be damned sure he would do his best to guide Sasuke through the dark. 

\---------------

“Sasuke, dinner!” Iruka shouted into the apartment as he plated the food. While he would never regret his decision, he was beginning to see why the Hokage warned him about adopting the Uchiha heir. The last few days had been tense. Iruka and Sasuke spent the first few days unpacking the boxes that had been delivered the morning after the boy’s adoption. Within the first day Sasuke managed to shake off the distant expression but the boy remained cold. When Friday finally rolled around, Iruka and Sasuke both went in for their mandatory return to the academy. The boy ignored all the other students, keeping his head down and eyes on his notebook. Although he didn’t seem to react badly to being in class, Iruka still had his worries.

Over the last few days, the two had alternated between total silence or questions that Iruka asked. These questions were usually answered in less than five words. Sasuke was polite to a fault, but it seemed off to Iruka. The teacher remembered Sasuke being a bit bratty, sometimes outright rude if the wrong person said the wrong thing. Now, however, the boy was reserved and withdrawn. It was to be expected after witnessing such horrors, but Iruka was also very sure that Sasuke was trying to bury his feelings. This was a dangerous game that Iruka was all too familiar with. He had to play his cards right, or he would alienate Sasuke from him. But he also knew he had to encourage Sasuke to let himself mourn, or those feelings would only grow into something hateful and monstrous. Iruka was determined, if nothing else, to keep Sasuke from going down that path. 

Sasuke met him in the dining room, pulling Iruka from his thoughts. The boy took his plate and sat down in what had become his spot. Iruka sat across from him. 

They picked at their food in silence for a few minutes before Iruka finally couldn’t take the quiet anymore. “So, Sasuke. How do you like your room? Tomorrow is a Saturday so I’ll be free all day. We can go shopping and pick some stuff up if you’d like?”

“It’s fine.” Sasuke’s eyebrow twitched slightly. The day had likely drained the boy to the point where he could no longer hide behind that blank face. It was the most Iruka had seen him respond since Sasuke’s adoption so he continued to try to make polite conversation, hoping for another reaction. 

“What about some training? We could head out to the training fields in the morning and get in some throwing practice.” It seemed like a fair question, as Iruka had known Sasuke to be a very hard worker . 

“No, thank you.” A slight scowl began to grow on Sasuke’s face. Iruka pressed on, praying these questions were leading somewhere. 

“Do you have any goals for your future? Maybe I could help you make some plans to better achieve them.”

Finally Sasuke snapped. He stood up and slammed his hands onto the table. His eyes met Iruka’s for the first time since entering the teacher’s home and his reply was a yell, rather than the unresponsive tone Iruka had grown accustomed to. “Why do you care!”

“Because I want to support you. I want to know about you so I can support you in the best way possible.” Iruka did his best to keep his expression neutral, his voice even.

“You don’t care about me! You adopted me to use me, just like that council wanted to do. I know nobody who wants to adopt me actually cares about me!” The boy started to shake, the table trembling along as Sasuke’s hands were still pressed onto the surface.

“I do. I care about you.” 

“No you don’t!”

“Yes, I do. I care about you. I want to get to know you, I want to know what your goals are so I can help you achieve them.” Iruka slipped into his teaching voice. When students raised their voices it often went one of two ways. Either the student would cower when Iruka yelled back or Iruka would speak calmly and repeat what he was saying until the student understood and calmed down. In this case, he knew shouting wasn’t going to help him, Sasuke would likely storm off. At least they were talking now.

“You want to know my goals? I only have one!” Sasuke barked out his reply, his face twisting with mixed emotions

Iruka nodded. “I would like to know, yes.”

“I have to kill Itachi! He needs to be killed so my clan can be avenged! That’s my only goal! You wouldn’t understand, nobody does!” Never before had Iruka seen such pain. It was clear the boy had been planning this for a while but the look on his face when he finally told Iruka the plan was heartbroken. Iruka remembered hearing Sasuke brag about his big brother to the class and about how determined he was to follow in his footsteps. After what Itachi had done, it was likely that Sasuke felt something deeper than betrayal. The heartbreak would have to be addressed later though. For now, Iruka wanted to convince Sasuke to change his plans. He wouldn’t let Sasuke grow up angry and bitter, and a revenge plot was guaranteed to turn anyone hateful. 

Iruka sat and watched the boy silently for a moment, waiting for Sasuke to catch his breath after his outburst. Once he was sure the boy was paying attention, he spoke. “And what then Sasuke? What happens after you kill him?”

The child hesitated. “I don’t care!”

“No, you don’t know, and that should terrify you. By saying that you don’t care you are telling me you would go to any lengths to avenge your clan, at the expense of your village, your friends, even your life. You want to become stronger, that’s an admirable goal, but if that goal is overshadowed by your quest to kill your brother then it’s unlikely you’ll receive any help here in Konana. You’ll have to go elsewhere, become a missing-nin, abandon the people who care about you for the sake of revenge.” Iruka laid it before Sasuke like fact, hoping it would be enough to sway the boy, or at least make him think about his options. 

“All the people who care about me are dead!” The hush following that statement was deafening. 

Neither spoke or met the others gaze until finally Iruka let out a sigh. The factual strategy had failed. Time to try a different approach. “I care about you Sasuke. You must know that. I can’t say I know you very well but I want to get to know you. I want to know who you are, not just the avenger you envision yourself to be. I know you want to avenge your clan but I can’t help but think you would be much stronger if you just let people into your life. Do you know why ninja work in three man teams?”

Sasuke’s eyes met his, obviously caught off guard by the sudden question. He sat down once more and thought it over for a moment before answering. “...because it’s not safe to send someone out alone?”

“They work in three man teams because that means they can work together and help each other. Three ninja fighting side by side will always be stronger than a ninja fighting alone. Why do you think your brother said such awful things to you before he left? He wanted you to feel absolutely alone, he wanted you to hurt in silence and become nothing more than a vengeful, hateful person whose only goal was to kill his brother. And maybe he wants to use you to clear his conscience.” Sasuke’s surprised expression told Iruka that the boy hadn’t considered this. Iruka continued with this point, hoping to further strengthen his argument. “I can’t imagine he’s emotionless, he must feel some kind of guilt about what he’s done. If you were to make killing him your only goal in life he would be getting exactly what he wants. He would feel a sense of accomplishment for you avenging your clan because he put you on that path in the first place. Sasuke, why should you listen to a man who hurt you like this? Wouldn’t it feel better to be able to live a life you made for yourself, rather than one that your brother carved out for you?”

“I… I don’t know.” Again the two sat in silence, their food long since forgotten in front of them. 

“I don’t want you to be ruled by someone like him. I know a lot has happened in such a short amount of time but I also want you to feel like you can heal without trying to kill someone. I want you to understand that there are many people who still care about you and that through all of this you will have support. From me, from your friends, from this village. We are all here for you Sasuke.” The boy’s head was down, his hands clenched into fists in his lap. Iruka waited for a response but when he saw Sasuke’s shoulders begin to hitch he realized he wasn’t going to get one. 

He moved quickly, kneeling down in front of Sasuke, extending a hand but stopping before he touched the boy. Sasuke was still facing the table, seeming to be too absorbed in his thoughts and tears to have noticed Iruka move. Iruka waited patiently, hoping he might get a response from Sasuke just by being close but when nothing changed he finally decided to act.

“Sasuke, can I give you a hug?” After spending a few days with Sasuke the last thing he expected was for Sasuke to launch himself off the chair, wrap his arms around Iruka’s neck and cry into his shoulder. Yet Iruka found himself tumbling to the floor with a sobbing child in his arms. Sasuke’s cries were loud and pained, each breath harsh and often catching in the back of his throat. Very quickly the shoulder of Iruka's shirt was soaked through with snot and tears. Sasuke grabbed fistfuls of Iruka’s shirt, seams popping with the force. Iruka knew the boy wouldn’t listen to anything he said right now, Sasuke’s head was too full of thoughts already, his ears likely ringing from the stress of it all. Instead Iruka simply pulled them both up into a sitting position and held Sasuke in his lap while he cried. After a few moments, he gently began to rock them back and forth, remembering with a sad smile that his mother would do the same for him when he was a child. 

It took well over fifteen minutes for Sasuke to calm down enough to take a deep breath and another five for his breathing to even out entirely. Iruka couldn’t feel tears falling onto his shirt anymore but that was likely only because Sasuke was dehydrated and exhausted. Iruka kept rocking them both until the fists gripping the back of his shirt loosened and Sasuke finally relaxed. 

“I’m not a baby, you don’t have to treat me like one.” Sasuke’s voice was hoarse and cracked slightly but it was enough to get Iruka to give a sudden laugh. Even after crying his eyes out the boy was concerned with being treated like an adult. 

“No, you’re not a baby. But comfort isn’t just for babies. Comfort, especially from the people who care about you, is for everyone.” Sasuke didn’t comment but he also didn’t move. They stayed on the floor, rocking back and forth for over half an hour, only moving when Sasuke’s stomach started to rumble. 

Iruka chuckled, happy for a distraction. This had been a big first step, but he knew they would both need to relax a bit after so many tears. “Well, looks like we should get you fed. Anything specific you want?”

“We can just eat the food you made I guess.” Sasuke gave a little shrug but didn’t move to get up. He rubbed his eyes, wiping snot and tears onto his shirt sleeve. Iruka was grateful it was Saturday tomorrow, such an emotional evening required rest and time to recover.

“We’ll pack what I made up and heat it up tomorrow. After getting all that out you deserve some comfort food to finish off the night. Anything you want, you name it.” Sasuke seemed lost in thought for a moment, then his mouth twitched in a hint of a smile. 

“There’s this place my father took me to. I don’t remember the name but I know the street it's on.” Iruka nodded and stood up, simultaneously helping Sasuke to his feet as well.

“Up for a little outing then?”

“Ok.”

Iruka changed clothes while Sasuke went to the bathroom to wash his face. They both finished cleaning up quickly then took to the streets in search of Sasuke’s comfort food. It turned out that the place Sasuke remembered was actually a restaurant that specialized in stir fry and curry dishes. It was lit mostly by paper lanterns and there were strings of origami cranes hanging down around the lights. The dark wood floors and furniture gave the place an element of class while the scents from the kitchen and overall atmosphere created a homely feel. The hostess seated them at a small table by a window so they were able to watch the people walking by on the busy street while they browsed the menu. Apparently Sasuke knew exactly what he wanted but Iruka was indecisive enough to ask the young boy for help. He was happy to point out that the curry here was very good but was especially good if it had tomatoes in it. He also pointed out that the seaweed salad was to be avoided as it was too slimy but hinted not so subtly that the dumplings were some of the best in the village. In the end they each got a different curry, Sasuke’s with extra tomatoes, and an order of dumplings to share. While they waited for their food Iruka decided to strike up conversation, hoping to distract Sasuke from the emotional turmoil he was facing.

“Sasuke, would you like to play a game while we wait?” Iruka grinned across the table. 

Sasuke huffed out his reply, crossing his arms as he spoke. “Games are for kids.”

“You are a kid.” It took everything Iruka had to stifle his laughter.

“Games are for little kids.” Sasuke clarified. 

Iruka thought for a moment, trying not to smile too much at Sasuke’s attempt at a mature attitude. “What about mahjong? Or shogi? Those are both games that my grandparents played and they certainly weren’t kids.”

Sasuke narrowed his eyes before nodding in agreement. “Fine, what’s your game?”

“It’s simple, barely even a game. More like a get-to-know-you exercise if you’re up for it. We just take turns asking questions. They can be anything, they can be simple or complex, they can be personal or even about our beliefs. You can even pass on questions if you’d like but if you do answer it needs to be honest. That ok with you?” 

Something Iruka had said seemed to interest Sasuke, he sat up straighter and nodded quickly. He tried to hide all of this behind a scowl but it didn’t get past Iruka. “Fine, I’ll play your game that isn’t even a game. But I go first.”

“Sure, go right ahead.”

“Why did you adopt me?” Sasuke let loose a smirk, thinking he had tricked Iruka right from the start. Iruka could only imagine what Sasuke thought the answer might be. Probably something to do with Iruka trying to gain political power or trying to use Sasuke to get into a better position in the village. He, however, was about to learn the truth.

“I adopted you because you reminded me of myself.”

Sasuke blinked at Iruka in surprise. “...what?” 

“It’s true, you remind me of myself when I was a kid. Granted, we both handle our pain in different ways. You try to bottle it up and I tried to joke it off but we both share similar trauma.” Iruka hadn’t thought he would be sharing his story so soon but now he could see it was foolish to wait. He needed to connect with Sasuke, prove to the boy that they had something in common. 

“What, your entire clan was slaughtered in front of you by your own brother?” Sasuke sneered. 

Iruka didn’t let Sasuke’s tone phase him. “No, but my parents were my only relatives and they were killed by the nine-tailed fox.”

Sasuke went silent. It was a well known fact that discussion of the nine-tailed fox was almost taboo but here was Iruka, chatting about it calmly while waiting for his curry.

Of course, that was the moment that Sasuke chose to surprise Iruka for the second time that day. The boy lowered his head, his voice so quiet it was difficult to make out. “I’m sorry. That must have been awful.”

“It was. I was angry for so long but I tried to hide it. One day I just couldn’t anymore. I blew up at a teammate, yelled and screamed at them until I couldn’t anymore. I went on and on about how terrible everything was and how I hated this and that, about how I couldn’t stand the world. She let me carry on until my voice was raw. Then do you know what she did?” A sad smile grew on Iruka’s face, his eyes lowering. 

“What?” 

“She walked over and hugged me. Then I broke down in a different way, similar to what happened to you tonight. She held me while I cried and when I was done I realized just how much it was hurting me to hold onto such anger for so long. It took time but I let it go. The anger was holding me back and it was only a few weeks later that I took the chunin exams and passed. I was able to finally begin to move forward with my life after letting all that pent up emotion out.” The story he told Sasuke was only slightly different from what actually happened. Iruka figured that he could tell Sasuke later about how Anko felt the need to literally beat some sense into Iruka after the hug. She was a good friend but had been insulted that Iruka let himself go for so long without asking for help. Despite the tough love, that was a lesson that Iruka had never forgotten. 

“That’s… that’s a lot.” Sasuke stared down at his fists as he took in everything Iruka had said. 

“It is. But it’s one of the many reasons I adopted you. I couldn’t imagine someone else going through all that alone. I needed to make sure you had someone in your life.” The boy nodded in response and they sat for a few moments in silence. Sasuke chose to break the silence with probably the last question Iruka could have expected. 

“What if I don’t turn out the way you want?” Sasuke obviously was expecting another long, drawn out explanation and he would get one, just as soon as Iruka stopped laughing. Iruka ended up laughing so hard he had to use the table for support to not fall out of his chair. The thought was comical to the older man. How could this young boy, already smart beyond his years, ever let him down when Iruka was already so impressed with him? It was such an absurd thought to the teacher that he struggled to stop laughing and only did when he saw Sasuke frowning. He stopped laughing and instead smiled at the boy.

“Sasuke, I want you to remember this. I will never be disappointed in how you turn out. You are already on the path to being an amazing ninja and a wonderful person. Whatever you want to do, I support. I’ll even support you if you tell me right now that you don’t want to be a ninja. I’m here for you Sasuke, that means in everything you do. I’m not going to choose pieces of your life to support. You’ll have all of my support, always.”

“Boy, you really are a teacher with how you lecture.” But despite the harsh words Iruka could see a smile peeking into Sasuke’s expression, a slight shine in his eyes that said he might cry again if Iruka didn’t distract him soon.

Deciding to save Sasuke from possible public embarrassment, Iruka continued their earlier game. “So, by my count you’ve asked me a total of five questions. I think it would be only fair if I got to ask you five questions now.” 

“We were talking, that’s not fair!” 

“Then you had better trick me into talking with your answers or hope I pick easy questions!”

Iruka asked purposefully easy questions just to distract Sasuke - “What’s your favorite food?” “Do you want dessert tonight?” “If we got a pet, what kind of pet would you want?” - but Sasuke seemed to like the challenge of tricking Iruka into asking more questions. He gave the teacher half answers, pushing him to ask more questions until he had asked seven questions and gotten answers to all of them. They went back and forth for a while, sometimes forgetting they were playing a game until one of them reminded the other about how many questions they had racked up. Iruka had just gotten Sasuke to fully smile with an anecdote about the time he tricked his teacher into thinking her entire class had gone missing when the server brought out their food. Sasuke stopped smiling when his plate was set in front of him and instead turned thoughtful. Iruka saw a bit of sadness creep back into his expression.

“You have another question.” Sasuke had picked up his chopsticks and shifted the curry around but didn’t start eating. Iruka knew Sasuke was prompting him to ask something, something specific so he could only hope to guess right.

“Sasuke, what makes this comfort food to you?” Sasuke gave him a little smile that, to Iruka, was too sorrowful for any child to bear. 

“The food is good, but my father brought me here once.” Sasuke paused and, despite the serious conversation, seemed to be determined to keep playing the game and make Iruka ask more questions.

“Was it a special night?”

Sasuke gave a small nod. “It was. He told me he loved me that night. In this restaurant.”

Iruka, not for the first time since bringing Sasuke into his life, was stumped. He understood what Sasuke was telling him but he didn’t want it to be true. Could a father really not tell his son that he loved him more than once? Was this Sasuke’s only memory of the man telling him that he was loved? Iruka prayed not but he couldn’t deny what evidence had been put in front of him. 

“I can see how that would be a cherished memory.” 

“Mother always told me that he loved me. She said he was just bad at saying it.” The boy mixed the curry with his chopsticks while Iruka puzzled out what to say.

“Some people don’t know how to express themselves well. It doesn’t mean they don’t feel something, it just means they might not know how to tell others how they are feeling.”

Somehow Sasuke’s smile went from sad to heartbroken. He refused to look up and Iruka watched a single tear plop down onto the wooden table top. “That’s exactly what mother said.”

“Sasuke, did I upset you? Would you like to leave?” The boy made a quick job of wiping away the tears with the back of his hand, being strategic so the waitress wouldn’t see him do it. His smile shifted back into a more neutral expression. It couldn’t be called blank with what was trying to peek out from behind it, but Iruka knew it was to keep the public from seeing Sasuke hurting. 

“No, I want to stay. Besides you owe me three questions and I want to ask you about the food. We have to stay to finish it.” Iruka gave a little laugh and held up his hands to show he surrendered before picking up his chopsticks and digging in. 

They ate and swapped questions until their food was gone and Sasuke was starting to yawn. The waitress collected the bill and it wasn’t long before they had walked back to Iruka’s apartment. 

Sasuke’s eyes were drooping and he started walking to his room the second Iruka opened the door. Before he could reach it, however, Iruka called him over. The boy was curious enough to listen and obviously wasn’t expecting Iruka to hold his arms out in the universal offer for a hug. They stood there for a few silent moments, Sasuke doing mental calculations in his head while Iruka patiently waited for him to make a decision. He was rewarded with a quick but firm hug before Sasuke ran into his new room to hide. The door was shut but it couldn’t keep out Iruka’s happy laughter. 

“Goodnight, Sasuke, sleep well!”

And quietly, almost to himself, Sasuke replied. “Goodnight, Iruka. Thank you.”


	7. Brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was both a lot of fun to write and kind of difficult. Still, I really liked the way it turned out! 
> 
> Think I'll be going back to my every two week update schedule because I've been hit by some seasonal depression. I've also got some other ideas for short stories I want to write in between chapters and the plot bunnies are kind of distracting me. I'm going to do my best to get my chapters out on time though, no worries on that one!

It had been three weeks since Iruka had adopted Sasuke and he was happy to see the boy progressing. There were still days when Sasuke was disconnected from the world, almost out of Iruka’s reach, but they were slowly decreasing in number. The boy still lashed out, sometimes for the most insignificant things. Sasuke’s therapist had told Iruka that such anger after the loss Sasuke had experienced was common and would lessen with time.

That was another hurdle all together. Therapy. At the beginning Sasuke had outright refused to go, telling Iruka quite loudly that he was fine and didn’t need help from a shrink. Unluckily for him, therapy was a mandate by the Hokage and whether Sasuke liked it or not, two of his evenings a week were spent in the village mental health ward. And even though Sasuke protested, Iruka could tell it was helping. However slowly, the boy was coming around, showing more of his personality and growing more comfortable with his new life. It made Iruka ecstatic to know that Sasuke wouldn’t go through the same pain he had, or at least, not as much. 

And yes, Sasuke would continue to face trauma from that terrible night for the rest of his life, and yes, therapy would help him cope with his loss and anger. Both of these problems were being addressed as best they could. But so far, Iruka had no answers on how to help Sasuke keep calm in the mission room.

Iruka worked in the mission room four nights out of the week. Two of these nights had Sasuke in therapy, meaning Iruka could just pick him up afterwards. Friday night Iruka had off which meant that the two walked home together. But this left two nights where Sasuke was forced to sit in the crowded, noisy mission room and told to do his homework. It was clear the boy didn’t mind doing his work but sudden noises would cause him to startle. Shouting from the ninja passing by distracted him and whether Sasuke knew it or not, the boy kept an eye on everyone in the room with the caution of someone who refused to trust others. 

Tonight was one of the worse nights. It was Thursday, meaning Sasuke had already gone through two nights of therapy on Monday and Wednesday, as well as a night in the mission room on Tuesday. The boy was exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes and a frown deeply set on his face. While Iruka had made sure to set Sasuke up at a table far from the crowd but still in his line of sight, it was becoming more and more clear that Sasuke was simply too overwhelmed to stand being in the mission room any longer. Iruka had seen ninja come back without sleeping for a solid week who still looked better than Sasuke did. When he noticed Sasuke's eye begin to twitch, Iruka made up his mind. He needed to get Sasuke home as soon as possible through whatever means necessary. 

"I apologize, Lord Hokage, but I think I need to take Sasuke home to rest." Before the Hokage could even get a word out Iruka was moving to pack up. The village leader nodded in agreement but the downward tilt of his lips told Iruka to not get into a habit of dismissing himself without permission. 

Sasuke startled when he saw Iruka approach and was surprised to see that the older man had his bag packed. The way his shoulders sagged in relief didn't escape Iruka's notice, however. "Hey Sasuke, let's head out for tonight."

"You got off early?" Sasuke's voice was skeptical, knowing just how much Iruka worked after living with him for weeks. In that time Iruka had also learned that Sasuke had an extreme work ethic. Almost nothing could keep him from finishing his work or his training. This also meant that Sasuke held other people to the same standard. It had been years since Iruka trained so much but Sasuke seemed to appreciate it when they worked together one-on-one. If the boy found out that Iruka had asked to get off early for his sake Iruka could only imagine that the response would be explosive. 

"No, I asked the Hokage if I could leave and he said yes." The boy clearly wasn't convinced, but he also didn't have the energy to question Iruka. His desperate desire to escape the mission room easily won over his curiosity about the new situation. Sasuke rushed to pack his bag and he was at the teacher’s side in seconds. They made quick work of exiting the tower then began a much slower, relaxed walk back to the apartment. 

“Sasuke, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something.” The boy tensed up, giving Iruka a side eyed glance in response. Even after all the time he had lived with Iruka, Sasuke was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. Iruka constantly reassured himself that this would change with time as Sasuke learned more about Iruka, but until then Iruka always made sure that Sasuke understood the tone of their conversations right away. 

“You’re not in trouble. I’ve been meaning to tell you that if you ever get too stressed out at school or in the mission room you can always tell me and we can go home. The Hokage is pretty understanding about our situation and there’s always a substitute teacher on standby.” Iruka tried his best to present the idea casually but Sasuke and his work ethic would have none of it.

“But you can’t do that! I can’t interrupt you during work.” The boy’s lips twisted into a frown, his hands clenched around the shoulder strap of his bag. Iruka realized quickly that Sasuke had likely never been allowed to ask for such things, or if he had, he was punished for it. This didn’t sit well with the older man so he quickly tried to comfort the boy. 

“Sasuke, it’s alright. I want to know when you’re getting overwhelmed so I can help you.” Gently, so as to not surprise the boy, Iruka placed his hand on Sasuke’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. When Sasuke didn’t shrug the hand off Iruka considered it a win. 

Once again, Sasuke was determined to not accept Iruka’s attempts at support. “It wouldn’t help me though… wait. Is that what you did tonight? Did you leave early because of me?”

Iruka knew lying to Sasuke would only lead to more upset later so he went for the completely honest route. “Yes, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. You’re important to me Sasuke, I want to make sure you’re taken care of.”

They walked in silence for a moment, Sasuke’s eyes not leaving the road before them. When the boy finally spoke up, his voice was soft but demanding. “Hm… I just…. I don’t like it. Ok?” 

While he didn’t mind going along with Sasuke’s wishes, Iruka also didn’t like the idea of not being able to help the boy when he needed it. It only reminded him of all the times he could have used such support but never got it. Although, Iruka knew that he and Sasuke were two very different people. Iruka didn’t mind the direct approach but Sasuke had been discouraged from asking for what he needed since he was young. This meant Iruka would have to get creative if he wanted the boy to not feel guilty when asking for help. “Alright, how about we compromise?” 

“How so?” Iruka was expecting Sasuke to be skeptical but the boy’s tone only carried curiosity. 

“I could teach you some basic codes. Morse code would be the easiest one to start with, especially for our purpose, but I wouldn’t mind teaching you more if you’re interested.” It was the most subtle solution Iruka could think of. A code sent through a tap of the fingers would be unrecognizable to most of Sasuke’s classmates, allowing him to ask for help indirectly and quietly. The mission room posed a different problem, as most ninja would be able to recognize such basic codes, but Iruka doubted many of them would bother getting involved if they were smart. After all, Iruka had gained a reputation of being someone you didn’t want to mess with rather quickly. He heard whispers from older shinobi about the ‘Monster of the Mission Room’ and grinned with delight. Yoshino Nara’s legacy was known throughout the entire village and Iruka was nothing but proud to have been able to live up to it. 

“Really?” Sasuke’s excitement brought Iruka out of his thoughts. It was the most energized he had seen the boy in days. 

“Sure!” With his energy renewed, Sasuke’s eyes grew brighter and he picked up the pace. For the rest of the walk home they chatted about the different codes Iruka knew and how easy or difficult it would be for Sasuke to learn them. Despite trying to discourage Sasuke away from the more difficult codes, the boy would have none of it and insisted he be taught everything Iruka knew. 

When they got home, Sasuke immediately pulled out his notebook and sat down at the dining room table, ready to learn. Iruka took his seat next to the boy and began to cover the basics of morse code. It only took a few minutes for the teacher to realize he had created a monster, though. Sasuke picked up everything he was taught with alarming speed. They had only been going over morse code for an hour before Sasuke had gotten the hang of it and demanded they move onto something else. 

By the end of the night they had gone over four different codes, all of which Sasuke picked up relatively quickly. The real test came the week later when the two found themselves back in the mission room. It had been particularly busy for a Tuesday and Iruka knew that the especially loud genin teams caused Sasuke lots of stress. He sat stiffly at a far table, his leg bouncing with anxious energy, his gaze constantly shifting every time someone in the room moved. 

When there was a lull in people Iruka met Sasuke’s eyes, then looked down at his hand. He tapped out a quick question “You ok?” to which he got a similarly basic reply, “Yes.” Iruka sent Sasuke a smile and a subtle thumbs up before greeting the jonin who just entered Iruka’s line. Out of the corner of his eye Iruka watched Sasuke return to his homework. The boy’s posture became relaxed and his leg stopped bouncing. 

By the end of the night they had exchanged a few more messages, sometimes changing codes if Sasuke thought someone was watching too closely. While the paranoia worried Iruka slightly, he was happy to see Sasuke walk out without dragging his feet behind him in exhaustion. It was another small step towards recovery, one Iruka was ecstatic to see. 

\---------------

Four months after Sasuke’s adoption and Iruka finally felt they were beginning to fall into a pattern. Their day started with a healthy breakfast where they would discuss plans for the rest of the week. Sasuke would tell Iruka what he planned to work on during individual training and sometimes mentioned something he wanted to talk with his therapist about. The two walked to school together, asking questions back and forth until the academy came into view. Sasuke tended to clam up when other students saw him in public with Iruka, meaning he spent most of the school day quiet. After school they would walk to Sasuke’s therapy session or to the mission room depending on the day. By the time evening rolled around they were both pretty worn out and more often than not opted for take out rather than something cooked at home. It had become a tradition to try and find a new restaurant or at least try something new at a restaurant they had visited previously. The only exception was the first restaurant that they had ever visited together, where Sasuke would always get curry with extra tomatoes. 

Iruka had been assured by Sasuke’s therapist that routine was a good thing, but there was just one thing that bugged the teacher. In the four months since Sasuke had returned to school, he had spoken to his classmates only when he absolutely needed to. A few of the students had tried to approach him but they were often turned away or outright ignored. If they got on Sasuke’s nerves he tended to lose his cool and blow up at them. Ino had been the first to experience this and Iruka had later found her crying in a cleaning closet. He had done his best to comfort her and assure her that Sasuke didn’t mean his harsh words but the girl wasn’t easily convinced. She eventually bounced back and still gushed over how great Sasuke was, but Iruka couldn’t help but notice that she gave Sasuke a few feet of clearance at all times. 

Seeing how Sasuke reacted to attention caused most of the class to ignore him. From personal experience, however, Iruka knew this wasn’t good for Sasuke. Whether the boy liked it or not, it was important to have friends. 

That weekend Iruka and Sasuke had agreed to work on their trap and wire skills. They had booked a small training field for the entire day and Iruka had spent a few hours teaching Sasuke the basics. Once he was sure Sasuke wouldn’t set off a trap on himself they moved onto the more nasty traps. It wasn’t that they were particularly deadly, but rather that they were extremely difficult to escape. Iruka prided himself on his ability to make people’s lives difficult with his traps and he spent a full five minutes praising Sasuke when the boy picked up on this and followed suit. The teacher had no doubt that with some dedication Sasuke could become the village’s trap and wire expert. Then again, Iruka was beginning to think that Sasuke could become an expert at whatever he put his mind to. The boy absorbed information like a sponge. 

After a morning full of practice the two took a break for lunch. They headed out to a small dumping stand, grabbed some food to go then brought it back to the training field. When they had gone through about half their lunch Iruka looked over to Sasuke. The boy’s eyes were distant, clearly in need of a distraction. It was then that Iruka decided to broach the subject of friends with his charge. 

“I’ve noticed something, Sasuke.” Iruka tried to start the conversation off with some intrigue, hoping to encourage his charge to engage with their discussion. 

“Yeah?” The boy didn’t look away from his food. 

Iruka debated trying to be subtle for a moment but ultimately decided against it. It wasn’t often that Sasuke caught on with subtle hints and it upset him if he felt he wasn’t understanding something right away. “You don’t really seem interested in making friends.”

The boy shrugged, then turned to Iruka to speak. The teacher gave a silent cheer for pulling Sasuke out of his thoughts. “Well, I haven’t really needed any.”

“Why do you think you don’t need friends?” From his experience kids were naturally drawn towards people. There weren’t many kids who felt they didn’t need friends and if they felt that way, there was always a reason. 

“I guess I always had my clan.” Sasuke’s voice broke at the end of his sentence. With the mention of his lost family Iruka held out his arms to offer the boy a hug. Sasuke accepted it but was quick to pull away. They took a moment to collect themselves before Iruka continued. 

He was very careful with his next words, knowing they would be what kept the conversation going or ended it. “Maybe now is the time to consider making some friends your age? It’s always good to have multiple sources of support. It’s nice to have family to support you but having friends that support you is just as powerful.” 

“Hm…” Sasuke seemed undecided but also rather calm so Iruka pressed on. 

“Do you remember what we talked about when I first adopted you? About how your brother wanted you to be alone?” It was a risk to bring up Sasuke’s brother, but a calculated one. Previous mentions of his brother would send the boy to that distant place in his mind or sometimes into fits of rage. Whenever that happened Iruka would do his best to help Sasuke center himself. In the past month, however, Sasuke had been doing better in terms of keeping his emotions managed. 

“Yeah?” The tone was slightly tense but the boy’s face was neutral. Iruka gave Sasuke’s shoulder a squeeze, hoping to convey how proud he was that Sasuke didn’t break down through the simple gesture. 

“Consider this another way to go against your brother’s wishes. Not only are you not following the path he laid out, you are actively going against it by surrounding yourself with people who support you.” For a few moments Sasuke didn’t respond. Iruka considered trying to take it back but ultimately decided to hold his ground. He wasn’t bringing up such a sensitive topic for nothing and he hoped that Sasuke could see just how important this was to his caretaker.

Sasuke finally gave Iruka a small nod. “It’s just hard. I don’t think many kids in the class like me. Or if they do they only like me because of some status thing that they don’t even understand.

“You don’t have to make friends with the people that don’t like you or the people that fawn over you. I know for a fact there are quite a few students in your class that have a neutral opinion of you. It might be good to start there and see if you can make friends with those kids.” It was difficult to not just blurt out a list of students that Iruka thought would make good friends but he held himself back. This needed to be something Sasuke decided on without the teacher’s help. 

“Hm… I’ll think about it.” The tone was final and Sasuke turned back to his lunch without meeting Iruka’s eyes. Iruka ignored the slight twinge of hurt at being dismissed. He could only hope now that Sasuke actually did like he said he would and that the boy wasn’t just saying that to appease Iruka. 

“That’s all I ask.” 

For a few days Iruka thought that Sasuke had simply disregarded their conversation. Really, he should have already learned to never underestimate his charge. It was the day after therapy when Iruka watched Sasuke enter the classroom and march over to Shino Aburame. The two boys spoke for a moment before Sasuke sat down next to Shino like that had always been his seat. Throughout the day Iruka watched as what were clearly stilted conversations became easier and by the time class was over the teacher could say without a doubt that the two were friends. He almost envied Sasuke, it seemed so easy for kids to make friends. Then again, Sasuke seemed to naturally draw people towards him, much to the boy’s horror. 

As they walked to the mission room Sasuke chatted about how his therapist had suggested he follow Iruka’s advice and that he had been thinking long and hard about who would make a good friend in his class. Apparently he had decided on Shino because the boy was both quiet and kind, as well as often alone. Sasuke confessed that the idea of Shino not having a friend didn’t sit well with him and that obviously the rest of the student body were idiots for not realizing what a great friend Shino could be. Iruka happily agreed with everything Sasuke said and even offered to have Sasuke’s new friend over for dinner sometime. The grin he got in response surely lit up the street. If not, it at least lifted Iruka’s spirit. 

\---------------

“She’s eating alone again.”

Shino didn’t bother looking up from his book. Sasuke and the other boy were tucked away on the far side of the classroom and had a clear view of Hinata, where she was sitting by herself three rows down. All the chairs surrounding her were empty. 

At Shino’s apparent disinterest Sasuke huffed. He gestured to the girl in question in hopes of getting the other boy’s attention. “Hinata. She’s eating alone again.”

“Yes, it seems that the other girls are afraid of her clan status. Why? I can’t be sure. Hinata is a Hyuga and the clan is similar in status as the Uchiha yet the girls flock to you.” From anyone else the words would have been filled with jealousy but because it was Shino they were just facts. Sasuke couldn’t help but appreciate his friend all the more for it.

Appreciation aside though, he still was faced with a problem. “Yes, but she’s alone.”

“I do not see your reason for being so concerned. We will be put on teams once we graduate and those people will be her friends. She will not be alone at that point.” Shino made a fair argument, most people were lifelong friends with the members of their genin team, but that was also years away. Sasuke thought back on Iruka’s words about how important friendship is and about how his therapist had encouraged him to widen his social circle. 

It just didn’t sit right with him to see someone so clearly alone in that moment. He had been given the chance to choose his path and he was slowly coming to a decision on which direction he wanted to go. “She’s alone right now though.”

“Do you plan on changing that?” Sasuke knew that Shino did not intend for these words to be inspiration but immediately Sasuke was inspired. He didn’t bother responding to Shino’s question, instead he simply stood up and walked over to Hinata. The girl had her head down and was picking at the food in her bento box. When Sasuke arrived next to her she practically jumped out of her seat, then looked up at him timidly. That alone was enough to push the boy into action. Sasuke grabbed both the bento box and her arm before pulling her over to the table where Shino was still sitting. Hinata made some quiet sounds of protest but they were easily ignored. Once at the table he pulled over a chair for her to use, then put her lunch down in front of it and took his seat once more. 

“Um… Sasuke… I-I’m.. Um… what’s going on?” The girl was looking down at him but her eyes rested on Sasuke’s shoulder rather than his face. Suddenly he could see why she was sitting alone. In a class of future ninja the girls were particularly brutal. If someone as shy as Hinata didn’t earn the favor of one of the popular girls she immediately became an outcast. Sasuke continued to ponder this while staring at Hinata, not bothering to answer her. She started to shift from foot to foot, clearly not used to being looked at for longer than a few seconds and certainly not as a subject of interest.

Shino finally put his book down to look up at Hinata. He must have seen the same thing Sasuke saw, the shy rather hurt look she carried with her at all times, because he sighed and motioned to the chair. Hinata looked between them then sat down, her eyes instantly glued to her bento once more. The group sat in silence for a few minutes, Sasuke looking away from Hinata to slowly eat his lunch while studying his notes, Shino reading his book once more, Hinata only moving to fidget with her shirt sleeves.

“It seems that Sasuke has decided to be your friend.” It was Shino that broke the silence, although his nose never left the pages. 

Hinata startled at the sudden noise, jolting slightly before peaking through her hair at Shino. “Oh, I… um… why?”

With the question Sasuke turned to face Hinata. “Because you were alone and I’ve come to a decision. I don’t want others to go through what I did, nobody should ever feel like that.”

“Oh…” Sasuke didn’t understand why the girl suddenly seemed so gloomy. Most people didn’t like to be alone from Sasuke’s understanding so wouldn’t having someone say that they wanted to be your friend be comforting? Luckily for him, Shino was better at reading other people's moods. Sasuke looked over to the other boy, one eyebrow raised. 

If it were possible to see through Shino’s dark glasses Sasuke would have sworn the boy was rolling his eyes at him. “Sasuke, Hinata has misconstrued your reasoning as pity. As someone who you have been acquainted with for a few weeks I doubt this was your intention.”

Sasuke turned back to Hinata, trying his best to meet her eyes. The girl was determined to keep them down so he decided to just explain himself, hoping his words would be understood. “That’s ridiculous. I don’t pity you. Hinata, you are way cooler and honestly a lot nicer than the other girls in this class. I don’t even have to know you much to know that.”

“That’s not… it’s not true… the other girls are so much better than me.” Shino sat up and put his book aside, then shared a look with Sasuke. They were both thinking the same thing. Hinata had no self esteem, to the point that it was almost sad. She was mousy and skittish, she had absolutely zero confidence. The boys nodded to each other before turning back to Hinata. They were going to befriend her, no matter how much she belittled herself.

“Hinata. You are the only girl in this class that doesn’t bombard me whenever they get close. You actually respect what I say and you don’t try to push me around or force me to do something I don’t want to do. I haven’t spoken to you much but I already like you for those things alone.” 

Hinata blushed, refusing to look up. “Oh, I… Um…” She bit her lip and curled in on herself. 

“I have found you to be quite intelligent. You do well in class and I have seen how hard you study. It is commendable and I would be quite happy to call you a friend, should you allow our acquaintance progress to such terms.” Hinata fidgeted in her seat, shyly nodding at the end of Shino’s declaration. When it came to people like Shino it was hard to fight with what he was saying. His words were fact and it seemed Hinata knew better than to try and disagree. 

“I… I don’t think I’ve ever had a friend before.” Shino and Sasuke shared another look before turning to smile at Hinata. They knew the way it felt to be forgotten in a room full of people. It didn’t matter if the girls flocked to Sasuke when none of them had tried to get to know him. It didn’t matter that Shino got praise from his teachers when his classmates sneered at him for it. Both of them were like minded and were more than happy to open their arms to someone else who shared their pain. After all, Sasuke had begun to realize that Iruka was right. Having support really did make all the difference. Suddenly the world wasn’t as harsh and the days didn’t drag on. There was something to look forward to again. Sasuke wanted to give Hinata that. 

Slowly Sasuke reached out to pat her arm, hoping to comfort her with the gesture. “Now you have two.”

\---------------

It was still odd to have friends but Sasuke was slowly growing used to it. Shino was easy enough to get along with and would sometimes invite Sasuke on walks in the forest. At these times Shino came alive, often going off on tangents about various types of bugs, their habitats, diets, and specialized skills that the Aburame clan could use them for. Despite still feeling uncertain about friendship in general at times, Sasuke had to admit that he enjoyed seeing Shino passionate and hoped to one day be able to articulate this to the other boy.

Hinata was a little trickery to spend time with. She was very nice but would also blame herself if something went wrong and apologize profusely, even if she had nothing to do with it. This could cause Sasuke to feel that anger he had been working so hard to reduce. So far he had been able to keep it under control. After a discussion with Iruka about it Sasuke had sat down with Hinata to explain that her apologizing for something out of her control was upsetting to him. She had almost apologized again for this but had managed to stop herself and told him that she would try her best to not overuse the phrase from that moment forward. The discussion brought the two closer. 

Sasuke noticed that the three of them started spending most of their school day together. While it was rare that they would all have a weekend available, somehow they managed to scrape together enough time for a relaxing afternoon by the riverside. Iruka had packed them a basket filled with food and handed them a picnic blanket so they could rest in comfort. The group had walked past the training fields until they found a secluded spot with enough shade to stay cool but enough sun to enjoy the bright day. The food that Iruka packed had been eaten quickly and once it was gone Shino was off to explore the area’s insect life. Hinata had collected a few types of flowers then returned to the blanket where she began to weave the stems together. For his part, Sasuke had simply laid back on the blanket to laze in the sun. 

After about half an hour of silence Sasuke felt Hinata move slightly closer to him. “Um, Sasuke? Are you awake?” Sasuke nodded and turned to look at her but didn’t bother sitting up. 

“Hm?”

“I made this for you. You don’t have to wear it if you don’t like it but I… um…” Hinata’s voice faded out but Sasuke had stopped paying attention the moment she had presented him with a flower crown. It was made out of delicate white and purple flowers, woven together so that the stems created intricate swirling designs to link each flower, rather than to hide the stems like Sasuke had seen from flower crowns that other girls made. He sat up, not taking his eyes off the beautifully crafted arrangement in her hands. Distantly he could still hear her stuttering. 

“You really made that for me?” His voice was filled with awe, causing Hinata to blush. 

“Oh, um, yes. I made one for Shino and myself too.” Sasuke finally tore his eyes away from the flower crown in her hands and looked down to find two more flower crowns on the blanket. One was made of white and pink flowers with strategically placed knots incorporated in the design and the other was made with purple and pink flowers which were overlapping and had very little stem visible. 

“They’re amazing.” Hinata grew flustered and turned away at the praise. 

“It’s not hard to make them.” Sasuke rolled his eyes at her denial. She still struggled to accept a compliment but the boys had been doing their best to help her understand her worth. It was difficult, as they had found out that Hinata’s family was a big source of the problem, but they were nothing if not persistent. Each day they gave her genuine compliments and slowly but surely she seemed to be warming up to them. Or rather, she was blushing and curling in on herself less, which Sasuke considered a win. He pulled himself out of his thoughts to continue their conversation. 

“Can you teach me?” At the request Hinata’s eyes lit up and she sent Sasuke a happy smile.

“Oh, sure!” The duo spent the rest of the afternoon weaving flowers together into crowns, then long chains when they ran out of space on their heads. Later in the day Shino returned from his explorations to find four flower crowns waiting for him. Two were made by Hinata. These both had clear designs in mind and were executed perfectly. The two that Sasuke made were basic and a bit clumsy but Shino still thanked the both of them and stacked the flower crowns onto his head. 

When the sun began to set the three kids made their way back into the village. They were all in high spirits, chatting amongst themselves, each covered in flower crowns and garlands. Sasuke broke away from the group first, as Iruka’s apartment was closest to the river. He gave one last wave to his friends then walked inside. 

“Iruka, I’m home!”

“In here! Just finishing up dinner.” Iruka’s voice echoed to Sasuke from the kitchen. For a moment Sasuke hesitated walking further into the apartment. His mother had always been very strict about making messes in the house and there were petals falling from the flowers. Not many but enough to be noticeable. Still, Sasuke had seen Iruka’s friends track in bigger messes without Iruka getting mad at them so Sasuke reasoned with himself that the man wouldn’t react too badly. He still made sure to keep his steps light as he wandered into the kitchen. 

Iruka turned away from the stove and the smile that was on his face grew in size the second he saw Sasuke.

“Looks like Hinata was busy today!” The teacher walked over to inspect the different flower decorations that covered Sasuke, still grinning widely. A surge of emotion ran through Sasuke and he took a second to try and understand it. It didn’t take long for him to realize that he didn’t like Iruka giving credit to someone else when Sasuke had done an equal amount of work. The word jealous hung in his head for a moment but Sasuke replied to Iruka’s statement instead of facing it. 

“I made some of these too.” Sasuke hoped that his tone was even and not too demanding. Though, if Iruka noticed anything odd he didn’t comment on it. 

“Really? You have quite a talent then. Of course, you seem to be good at everything you touch so it shouldn’t surprise me that you picked this up in just one afternoon.” Sasuke flushed, not knowing how to take a compliment. To go from jealous to flustered wasn’t something Sasuke was used to and he felt himself fumbling with his words. His caretaker didn’t seem to mind but it frustrated Sasuke. He wanted the man to know exactly how much it meant to him. Quickly he decided that if he couldn’t articulate what he wanted to say, he would do so with a gesture instead. 

Carefully, so as to not disturb the other flower crowns on his head, Sasuke removed the biggest of the lot and held it out for Iruka. “This one’s for you. Hinata helped me make it so that’s why it’s a bit fancier than the others.” 

“It’s really for me?” The boy didn’t dare look at Iruka’s face, afraid of what he would see. He stared down the ground and nodded furiously. Petals fluttered onto the linoleum floor with the movement. 

Sasuke saw Iruka shift and curiosity had him looking up. The teacher was kneeling down, the crown cradled in his hands like it was something precious. The smile on his face almost blinded Sasuke, but in a good way. It made him feel lighter. “Thank you Sasuke. It’s an amazing gift and I’ll treasure it.”

The praise was just too much and Sasuke dashed out of the room while throwing the weak excuse of getting ready for dinner at Iruka. From the kitchen Sasuke could hear Iruka laughing but it wasn’t unkind. It was filled with fondness, it was the kind of laugh Sasuke wanted to hear for the rest of his life. All the emotions Sasuke was feeling were strange to him and confusing, enough so that he knew he would need to take a few minutes to sort them out before returning to the kitchen. 

When he got to his room Sasuke took a few moments to take some deep breaths. His therapist had been working with him on mood regulation and had explained that even positive emotions could get overwhelming sometimes. She had then taught him a few different breathing exercises for when the world got to be too much. It still annoyed him slightly how much they helped him, as he hadn’t wanted therapy in the first place. 

With his emotions calmer, Sasuke began to take off the different flower arrangements. He considered just leaving them in a pile on his desk but it felt like an insult to their work to not display them. He decided to take a few more minutes to hang the garland over his bed, then carefully draped two of the flower crowns over a cat figurine Iruka had given him. The last flower crown, the first one Hinata had made him, was placed delicately in the middle of his desk. Sasuke decided to ask Iruka how to preserve it later. He wanted to be able to keep it for a very long time, after all, it was his first gift from a friend. 

Once he was finished redecorating Sasuke headed back out to the kitchen where Iruka was just finishing up with dinner. Sasuke took a plate and filled it with mixed rice and steamed vegetables. Iruka placed a piece of salmon on both their plates before they sat down at the dinner table.

“So, how was your afternoon? You have fun hanging out with Shino and Hinata?”

Sasuke thought back to his day. It had been spent with people who actually cared about him, he had received a gift which he would treasure, and he had been greeted with nothing but kindness when he got home. There were expectations put on Sasuke but they were nothing like what he was used to. Iruka never expected Sasuke to perform perfectly in school or to match a certain standard. Instead Iruka gave Sasuke choices on almost all matters of his life and he was expected to choose a path that made him happy. The thought that his caretaker wanted Sasuke to choose to be happy was both bizarre and felt so right. A realization struck him suddenly and he blurted it out to Iruka without thinking.

“Can I call you brother?” The question had slipped out unintentionally and had clearly taken Iruka off guard, if the fact that he had choked on his food was anything to go by. The older man pounded his chest a few times, trying to get his breathing back under control. All the while Sasuke panicked. What had he just done? Why would he ever ask something like that? Iruka had been kind enough to take him in, Sasuke knew he shouldn’t be making the man uncomfortable with such personal questions. 

Deciding that escape was the best course of action Sasuke stood up quickly enough for his chair to tumble over and tried to dash out of the room. Iruka wasn’t going to let the conversation go though and grabbed Sasuke’s arm before he could get far. 

“Hold on. Sasuke, you didn’t do anything wrong. You just caught me off guard. Can we talk about this?” Seeing now that escape was impossible Sasuke stiffly picked up his chair and sat back down. 

“Now, before I say anything else I want you to know that you are welcome to call me whatever you want. If you want to call me brother I’m completely fine with that, and I wouldn’t mind calling you my little brother either. I am curious about what brought this about though. Seems a bit out of the blue for you.”

“I just. Well. You see, Hinata made me that flower crown today and it makes me happy to see Shino happy but I was thinking that I wouldn’t have either one of them as friends if it wasn’t for you. Then I started thinking about how there used to be all these expectations on me but now you only expect me to be happy. Guess I realized that’s what family should actually be about and I would rather have a brother who wants me to be happy than a brother that wants me to be angry.” Sasuke winced at both how long he went on and how corny it sounded. When he didn’t get a reply right away he looked up and was surprised to see Iruka dabbing at his eyes with a napkin. 

“Did I say something wrong?” Questioning the adults in his life was a new experience for Sasuke, but one both Iruka and his therapist were actively encouraging. If Sasuke had to hear the words ‘good for communication’ one more time he would scream. Begrudgingly he did have to admit that it helped him to understand what was going on and that asking got him honest answers more often than not. 

“No, no! I’m just a little overwhelmed is all. I’m very happy to have had such an impact on your life Sasuke, and I never could have imagined having such an amazing little brother.” The warmth that spread through Sasuke’s chest was unexpected but he didn’t try to bury it. Instead he decided to take a page out of Iruka’s book and walked over to where the older man was sitting. For a second he debated how to go about what he wanted to do and finally settled on simply opening his arms. Iruka wasted no time scoping him into a tight hug and when Sasuke felt tears gently fall on his shoulder he knew they were out of happiness. If the boy wasn’t sure previously, he was positive when Iruka pulled away to give him a wide grin. It was the kind of grin that led to smile lines forming around the eyes, the kind of grin that was infectious. Without meaning to Sasuke felt himself responding with a smile of his own. He had a brother again, and this time his brother wouldn’t betray him. Of that, he was certain. 


	8. Sometimes It's a Hand in Yours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to say a quick thank you for all the comments, kudos, and support! It's helped me keep this story going and motivated me to post on time!

“Yo.” Iruka turned from where he was examining the vegetables on a market stand, only to be met with a wonderful view of Kakashi. The older man was leaning against a building a few feet away, but Iruka knew he hadn’t been there a second before. The mental picture of Kakashi rushing over while Iruka was distracted to lean against a wall in an attempt to look cool almost had Iruka giggling out loud. He just barely held it in and instead raised his hand to wave at the other man. 

As quickly as possible Iruka finished paying then wandered over to Kakashi. “Hello again. Out getting things for dinner?” 

“Um, no actually.” Kakashi’s cool attitude melted away in place of his shifting feet and shy glances. “Just passing through. Walk with me?” 

The teacher smiled happily at the shy request and nodded, noting the tinge of pink that was just barely peeking out from under Kakashi’s mask. Recently he and the other man had slowly been growing closer. At first they met after class when Kakashi picked Naruto up. Their discussions of the terrible condition of the orphanage along with the difficulties of raising a traumatized child had shifted to more mundane topics somewhere along the way. 

Kakashi started popping up at the most convenient times, when Sasuke was visiting his friends and Iruka just got off work. The older man would walk Iruka home and they would talk about their day, about their kids, about anything that seemed interesting at the time. Iruka learned that Kakashi was a fan of almost any food that had eggplant in it, especially miso soup, and that he had a preference for household objects with goofy patterns on them. Before learning more about Kakashi, Iruka had never known that there was a novelty store in town that catered specifically to ninja. The fact that all of the bars of soap in his apartment were shaped like shuriken was a testament to Iruka’s weak resolve. In turn, he told Kakashi about how much of a prankster he used to be, about his odd friendship with Anko, about how much he missed his parents. Kakashi always got quiet at the mention of family and Iruka could only assume that’s because he had lost his at a young age as well. 

“So… get anything interesting?” Kakashi made a show of trying to peek into Iruka’s shopping bags while the teacher pretended to move them to his other side to hide them away. When the other man successfully snuck around Iruka to investigate the bags he laughed and opened them for Kakashi to examine. 

“The usual. Soba noodles for tonight, some beef and vegetables for grilling tomorrow. Sasuke ate all the tomatoes again so I had to buy more.” They began walking again, this time standing slightly closer together. Iruka didn’t miss the way Kakashi leaned over ever so slightly. “At this rate I’m thinking of investing in a farm.”

“Are there ramen farms? Or am I just going to have to buy a factory?” While the idea of ramen packages with the heno-heno-moheji on them was humorous, Iruka couldn’t help but come back with a better idea. 

“Oh, just hire Teuchi full time. That’ll be much easier and at least he puts actual food in his ramen. I’m almost afraid to ask what that instant stuff is made out of.”

Kakashi’s head lowered, his voice dropping in pretend despair. “Salt. Only salt. Believe me, I’m an expert with how much I’ve bought. When it all started I had actually hoped that Naruto would grow out of the ramen phase but so far, no such luck.”

“Kids grow out of things and even if he doesn’t, it’s only ramen.” Iruka waited for a returned quip but it never came. The two walked in silence for a moment and Iruka could feel the tension growing. Something about what Iruka had said hit a cord with Kakashi. The teacher could practically see the gears turning.

When the older man finally began talking again his tone was somber and resigned. “I can’t help but worry that he’ll pick up some kind of self destructive habit from me.”

Iruka resisted the urge to roll his eyes because he knew Kakashi would take it the wrong way. Instead he stopped walking and gently took Kakashi’s hand in his free one. He made sure the other man’s eye met his before speaking so he would know if the words were actually getting through to him. “I don’t think you need to worry too much about Naruto. After all, kids are blank canvases. You provide the paint but they’ll mix it however they want, often in ways you could never see coming. Even then, it’s completely up to them to paint what they want. Just because you provided them with some darker colors doesn’t mean they won’t turn them into something beautiful. After all, the light doesn’t shine nearly as bright without the dark.” He ended it with a gentle squeeze, trying to further ground the other man and ensure that his words got through.

“That’s…” Iruka waited for Kakashi to continue but when the silence didn’t end the younger man steadily grew more concerned. 

He gave Kakashi’s hand another tentative squeeze, hoping for a reaction. “Kakashi?”

“Come to dinner with me!” It comforted Iruka slightly that Kakashi looked as surprised as he felt. 

“Huh?” Not the most elegant response he had ever come up with, especially in response to what was likely Kakashi asking him out on a date. Iruka winced, realizing he was likely blowing his chances with the other man. This of course led Kakashi to misunderstand, sending him scrambling.    


“I mean- shit. Um… Dinner? With me? Maybe later tonight?” The other man still hadn’t let go of Iruka’s hand. He held it gently, rubbing a calloused thumb along the teacher's knuckles. It was calming and helped Iruka get his thoughts together. He gathered his courage, knowing his next words would be terrifying to speak but necessary all the same. 

“Are you asking me out on a date?” Iruka had to be sure. After taking Sasuke in, Iruka had learned the value of being as clear and open as possible. Beating around the bush often led to hurt egos and damaged relationships, not something Iruka wanted to risk with Kakashi. 

The blush was back and this time it was a very charming bright red. Kakashi nodded, his eye meeting Iruka’s. “Yes? That is, if you want to.”

With a clear understanding of what Kakashi wanted Iruka let himself relax. While he might have been aware that he had a small crush on the other man, it was nice to know it was reciprocated. “Hm… I might have some free time tonight. Pick me up around seven?”

“Yes! I mean, sure. Yeah.” The attempted cool attitude signified a return to normal, most of the awkwardness passing as Kakashi slouched over once more. Their hands were still linked and neither one of them tried to pull away. 

They continued to walk until a fork in the road brought an end to their journey. After a few goodbyes and some last minute planning, Iruka shot Kakashi one last smile and turned to walk in the other direction. When he had gotten a fair bit away he turned around to watch Kakashi give a little cheer. It was flattering that someone was so excited to take Iruka on a date and the warmth that was building in his chest had him both excited and nervous. He had a few hours to get ready but before he headed home he had a new chore to finish. Iruka turned towards the mission room where Genma was on duty. Sasuke would need a babysitter and Genma owned Iruka one too many favors to be able to weasel out of it.

\---------------

Sasuke stood at the door, staring up at the silver haired man. He was taller than most with almost all of his face covered, only a singular rather shifty looking dark eye visible. Sasuke immediately disliked him. 

The young boy turned to shout back into the apartment, trying to hide his grin all the while. “Iruka! Some creep is at the door!” The man flinched at the harsh words, causing Sasuke to smirk. He had learned a lot in the last two years he had lived with Iruka, including how to get rid of people that you don’t like. The evenings spent doing homework in the mission room, glaring people down until they scurried out, were finally paying off. 

“I’m coming! Sasuke, don’t let any creeps in! You know the rules!” Iruka could be heard dashing through the apartment, doing his best to get to the door before something catastrophic happened. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had shown up and immediately caused property damage. Although, usually that was because Anko had a knack for destruction. By the time Iruka arrived at the door Sasuke had successfully stared the man down until his slouch had turned into a hunker to get away from the cold gaze. Sasuke looked up at Iruka, trying to convey just how disappointed he was with this stranger in one look. Instead he saw something that left him gaping. Iruka was staring at this man with a look of wonder and excitement, mixed with slight awe and nervousness. It was a look Sasuke had only ever seen on his fangirls. Not good. Not good at all.

“Brother?” Iruka didn’t even look down at him in exchange for grinning at the man in the doorway.

“Oh, Kakashi! I’m so glad you’re here. And early too! Sasuke, why didn’t you tell me Kakashi was here?” Sasuke felt like he was watching a horror movie. This was everything that was wrong with the world. His brother, the person that took him in and cared for him when no one else would, smiling up to a lazy looking creep. If there was one thing that Sasuke knew it was that Iruka deserved only the best people in his life. The moldy topped bean pole standing before them couldn’t possibly be good enough for a wonderful person like Iruka. 

“I did,” Sasuke growled. It only took a few seconds for Iruka to connect the dots.

“Sasuke! That’s not polite! Please apologize to Kakashi. He is not a creep.” 

Sasuke turned to Iruka, his eyes wide with alarm. He was about to protest but a single look into Iruka’s eyes stopped him. It was another recognizable look, one that Iruka gave to misbehaving kids before they got detention. Feeling defeated, he turned to Kakashi and bowed slightly.

“I’m sorry for calling you a creep.” Sasuke kept his head down so Iruka couldn’t see his expression. If his caretaker did, he would no doubt make Sasuke apologize again. Not only was the boy not sorry, he was feeling truly furious. The only one who should be apologizing was Kakashi! He rudely interrupted their night, doesn’t that deserve an apology?

“Maa, don’t worry about it. Um, Iruka, we should be going soon.” The man ran a hand through his hair, his singular eye wincing shut. He could likely sense Sasuke’s cold hatred as it rolled off him in waves. Iruka, luckily, was none the wiser. 

“Oh, right! I’m just waiting for Genma, he’s supposed to look after Sasuke tonight.” As if summoned footsteps could be heard running up the stairs. The group turned to watch the senbon wielding man dart up to the door, panting. 

Sasuke could do more than stand there with his mouth gaping, stunned by the sudden change of plans. Friday nights were game night. He and Iruka played Go while they talked about what they were going to do that weekend. But now Iruka was leaving with a stranger and Sasuke had been handed off to a babysitter. It was both infuriating and deeply embarrassing. Audibly snapping his mouth shut did little to attract the attention of the adults around him and Sasuke continued to brood.

“Sorry I’m late Iruka! Got held up in the mission room, someone set fire to a trash can.” Genma took a deep breath before leaning against the wall by the door. He was a little singed and smelt heavily of smoke. The small bit of satisfaction that this fact brought Sasuke still couldn’t outweigh his outright disgust at Kakashi and everything he stood for. 

“And I’m sure I’ll be the one to deal with that later. Thanks again Genma.” Iruka shot Sasuke a smile before stepping outside. It was that moment that Sasuke noticed his guardian was in civilian clothes. He was dressed up for this! Kakashi was just wearing black pants and a dark blue shirt with his ridiculous mask and hitai-ate over one of his eyes. Another thing added to the list of reasons why Kakashi wasn’t good enough for Iruka. 

“Not a problem! Have fun you two!” Genma winked at them, causing Kakashi to look away quickly and Iruka to blush. Then that blush turned to a returned wink as Iruka grabbed Kakashi’s hand.

“I’m sure we will. Don’t wait up!” Iruka dragged Kakashi off while Genma laughed. The idiot man couldn’t see how serious this was! Sasuke fumed silently, watching Iruka and Kakashi walk down the street. When they disappeared around a corner Sasuke turned and walked back into the apartment, leaving Genma outside. 

“Hey kid, you alright?” Genma asked as he came in and closed the door behind him.

“No. I just saw my big brother get kidnapped by a creep.” Genma found that funny. Sasuke did not. 

“Kid, Iruka is an adult man. He’s allowed to date.”

Sasuke whipped back around, his eyes wide with alarm. If that was true, the situation was much more serious than Sasuke had originally thought. “They’re dating?” he shouted, looking to Genma for answers.

“Oh, um. I thought Iruka told you.” Genma grimaced, realizing he probably shouldn't have said anything. 

“He didn’t tell me about any of this. He didn’t tell me about stupid, moldy Kakashi, he didn’t tell me about leaving tonight, he didn’t tell me about you coming here, and he certainly didn’t tell me he was dating someone!” Sasuke stormed away, his thoughts spiraling. How could this happen? Kakashi was clearly a good-for-nothing, lazy person. Why would Iruka - sweet, kind, amazing Iruka - agree to go on a date with somebody like that? Sasuke continued to seethe as he stomped away. He was only distantly aware of Genma following behind him, trying to make amends.

“Yeah, he and Kakashi are going on a date tonight. Sorry you had to find out like this.”

The words didn’t help Sasuke feel any better. The fact that he had been so left out of the loop stung and he had no interest in talking to Genma any more than he already had. “I’m going to my room, I don’t want to talk to you.” The bedroom door slammed in Genma’s face, almost catching his nose. 

“Nice chatting, I guess.” As expected, there was no response from Sasuke. 

\---------------

“So, where are we headed for dinner?” While Iruka had been leading the way as they left the apartment, he had no idea where they were going. 

Kakashi took a moment to fumble at the sudden question but a gentle squeeze of his hand seemed to help him focus. “Oh, um, I was thinking we could go to this little place out by the west gate? It’s got some amazing sashimi from what I’ve heard.”

“I know the restaurant you’re talking about. I’ve been there before.” Iruka turned to walk towards the restaurant in question, but Kakashi stopped short. From what Iruka could see, Kakashi’s eyebrows were furrowed together, concern etched into his features. 

“We can go somewhere else if you want?”

He gave the other man a slight laugh at the misunderstanding and shook his head. “No, no! I like it. In fact, it would be difficult to find a place I haven’t been in the village.”

“Oh?” They continued their way down the street, Kakashi having relaxed greatly with the gentle reminder that Iruka didn’t have wild expectations of him. The way Kakashi’s life had gone, Iruka had no doubt that people often hypothesized magical nights and fantastical dates with Kakashi. The stress of trying to live up to that must have been difficult and Iruka could only hope to lessen some of that worry. 

“I’m not exactly the best cook and that wasn’t really a problem until Sasuke came along. Kids can’t live off of overcooked rice and raw vegetables. We also have so little time in the day - with school, my work in the mission room, and his therapy - that more often than not we go out to eat. To keep that from getting too boring we try to find new restaurants around the village.”

“That sounds like a lovely tradition.” Kakashi’s voice was soft, his hand tightening it’s hold on Iruka’s hand ever so slightly. For a moment Iruka wanted to make Kakashi a part of the tradition as well, but with this being the first date he knew he was getting ahead of himself. He instead decided to go with a more humorous response, but the idea of slightly bigger family dinners never quite left his mind. 

“If only it wasn’t because we would starve otherwise.” 

After the short walk the two finally made it to the restaurant. It was rather brightly lit, with a clean, minimalistic appearance. They quickly grabbed a table in a quiet corner where they began discussing the menu. Iruka subtly pointed out the handful of eggplant dishes he knew were on the menu and Kakashi jumped on them, ordering every single one without shame. Seeing the rather bold display, Iruka felt a tug of competitiveness. When it was his turn to order, he did his best to get even more food than Kakashi, despite knowing that he would likely regret trying to eat it all. The side eyed look Kakashi gave him in response told him that the other man knew exactly what he was doing and that Iruka would have to guard his food to keep Kakashi from stealing it, just to win this little unannounced competition he started. 

While they waited for their food they fell into easy discussion, swapping stories about mutual friends, complaining about new regulations the council members were trying to pass, and of course bragging about how talented their kids were. 

It was only when their food arrived that Iruka realized their night was just beginning. As the server was slowly but surely covering the table in food Iruka met Kakashi’s eye over the table. The man’s relaxed posture had melted away and been replaced with a ramrod straight back, hands tightly clutching his utensils, his eye focused entirely on Iruka but attention on the server. Iruka mirrored the position as they continued to wait for the server to be done. 

The second that the woman finally walked away both men began to attack their meals while trying to sneak bites from the others dishes. Iruka often used his spoon to block wayward chopsticks, doing his best to shovel food in his mouth at the same time. When Kakashi was distracted by a rather large bowl of eggplant miso soup Iruka tried to sneak a piece of tempura, only to find his chopsticks stuck under the now empty soup bowl. Iruka quickly realized that Kakashi had him outmatched but that only egged him on, leading him to try and switch out a few pieces of tofu on Kakashi’s plate with some shreds of napkin. This worked but when Iruka turned back to his own dish, there were three pieces of sushi missing. 

This pattern continued for a few minutes, until both men began to slow down. Despite their enthusiastic attack on their meal each man still had about four dishes in front of them that they had yet to touch. 

When Iruka met Kakashi’s eye he couldn’t help but begin to laugh. The other man’s gaze darted between their food and Iruka with no small amount of horror. “I may have overestimated how much I could eat,” Iruka said between giggles.

Kakashi nodded in agreement, looking relieved. “Oh good, I’m not the only one. This competition was fun and all but I like being able to function after dinner.”

Iruka was about to question what plans Kakashi might have in store once they were finished but he never got the chance. Before he could speak, he caught sight of her. The overly large tan jacket, her oddly purple hair, the power pose that seemed to be her default stance. There was no mistaking it. Anko had just walked into the restaurant. As quickly as possible Iruka tried to slide under the table but it was no use, he had already been spotted. 

“Ruka! What a surprise!” From her tone alone Iruka could tell she was lying through her teeth. She only used the sickeningly sweet voice when she knew she was about to be yelled at. Anko, however, was clever and knew that Iruka wouldn’t want to yell in front of Kakashi so he was forced to take a more subtle approach. 

“Anko. You don’t sound very surprised.” While his volume was low Iruka couldn’t help but grit his teeth, something that easily leaked into his tone. 

The woman was unfazed by Iruka’s clear irritation. “You wound me! And what’s this, Kakashi is with you? Who would have guessed?” Her question was too pointed and Iruka immediately jumped to conclusions. 

“Genma told you, didn’t he?”

“Yes, but you can’t be mad at him for it. You know how I am.” She shrugged along with her poor excuse. 

“I do, but Anko I’m on a date.” Pointing this out didn’t see to faze her.

“A weird one from the looks of it. What’s with all this food?” Anko took her own question as an invitation to join them and sat down next to Kakashi. Iruka tried his best to send the other man a weak, apologetic smile and got a pleasant one in return. He turned back to the woman before she could get any more ideas. If there was a chance, however small, that he could get rid of her he was going to try. 

“You can eat fifty dango sticks in one go, you’re not one to judge.”

“Doesn’t matter. Let’s pack this all up and head out!” In a fit of energy Anko jumped out of her chair then began to try and haul Iruka from his seat as well. Iruka, just to be as stubborn as possible, let himself go limp in her arms. He hoped she would struggle but Anko was stronger than she looked and lifted him up, putting him on his feet without a problem. 

“And go where, exactly?”

“Karaoke!”

“Once again. Anko, I’m on a date.” He knew repeating himself would do very little to help but he was willing to try anything at that point.

“Kakashi doesn’t mind! Right, Kakashi?” Anko turned to glare Kakashi down. Behind Anko’s back Iruka did everything in his power to convey that he wanted nothing to do with Anko. He knew it was hopeless, however, when Kakashi’s eye squinted closed in his version of a smile. 

“If Iruka wants to go I don’t mind at all.” It was Iruka’s turn to glare. Kakashi must know that Anko would take that as a yes. The other man settled on a permanently pleased look before beginning to pack up their food to go.

“Then it’s settled! Let’s go!” Kakashi moved fast. The food had been packed up and the waitress was already walking away with the paid bill before he could blink. Anko walked ahead of them, talking loudly as they made their way to a karaoke bar down the street. Knowing that the moment they walked into the bar Anko wouldn’t leave them alone, Iruka took the time during their walk to hold Kakashi’s hand and make faces at Anko’s back. The other man laughed silently then joined Iruka in his childishness. They continued their new game until Anko turned around and almost caught them both. Luckily they were able to snap back to neutral smiles quickly and if Anko saw their goofy expressions she didn’t mention it. 

“Here we are!” Anko announced as she held up her arms to display what she called a bar and Iruka would call a dump. 

“Anko, this place is a hole in the wall.” The door was made of cracked wood and was set in the door frame at an angle so that there was a constant draft. The windows were covered in cardboard, making it impossible to see inside. The only signs of life from the place were a dimly lit neon sign and the light peeking through the cracks in the door. When Iruka turned to Kakashi to see if the other man could help them escape he found nothing but a thoughtful look as he examined their destination. After coming to some kind of a decision Kakashi gave a small nod of approval, much to Iruka’s horror. 

Never one to care for appearances or even cleanliness, Anko turned back around to grin at him. “Yeah, those are always the best places!”   


“No, I mean it’s disgusting.” 

The eye roll he got in response was expected but not appreciated. “That’s part of the charm.” 

The woman dragged them inside, yanking Iruka’s arm to get him to move. Kakashi was still no help, as his rather pleased smile hadn’t left his face since they made their way into the tiny bar. 

Anko finally found a seat she liked, one as close to the stage as possible before flinging herself into a chair. She waved a hand at Kakashi, not even bothering to look away from the stage where an older shinobi Iruka recognized from the mission room was singing very off key. Kakashi set down their takeout bags and moved to join them, only to be stopped by Anko. “Hey, Kakashi. Go act useful and grab some drinks for us.” 

Finally Kakashi’s smile broke. For a moment he seemed to be contemplating the best way to deal with Anko but Iruka knew from experience it was better to just do what she wanted. He gave Kakashi a small nod, which was returned before the other man turned to grab the drinks that Anko demanded. 

The moment Kakashi was out of sight, Anko whipped around, the grin on her face twisting up at the corners. That evil grin was one Iruka knew far too well. Anko wanted gossip and would do anything she could to get it.

“Kakashi huh?”

“Anko please-”

“How is he?”

“Anko-”

“Come on Iruka! Don’t be such a stick in the mud!” 

Iruka took a deep breath, steeling himself to deal with Anko and her bullheaded ways before replying. “This is our first date, Anko.”

“So he’s bad, huh?” She gave a little tisk to round out her disappointment on the matter. 

“Listen, no matter how good or bad he is that information is staying with me.” Iruka was ready to continue to fight for her to respect this boundary but instead her gaze softened. 

“Whoa, you’re serious then?” Her grin had softened, turning into something Iruka could begin to consider friendly. 

To say he was taken off guard was an understatement. “What?”

“You’re serious. You never minded when I poked around for info about your dates before but now with Kakashi you’re all stiff about it.” Thinking back, Anko was right. With his other dates they would gossip and carry on about every little detail, then get wildly drunk and end the night sleeping on the floor of whoever's apartment was closer. But a lot had changed in the past few years. Iruka didn’t want to risk his budding relationship with Kakashi, even if that meant changing his old ways. 

“He’s not like my other dates. I can actually see this going somewhere special.”

Anko nodded in understanding, her smile now genuine and kind. “I’m glad for you. You need that. Taking care of the little monster is great and all, but you deserve someone who’ll treat you right.”

“Sasuke is not a monster.” In his head Iruka tacked on ‘most of the time,’ knowing he couldn’t give Anko more ammunition than she already had. 

“You keep telling yourself that.” For a moment Iruka thought that was the end of the conversation but he should have known with Anko he was never that lucky. 

“Wait, I grabbed you guys at a restaurant!” She grabbed his arm, her eyes wide with her newfound realization. 

“Yes?”

“So you must have seen him without his mask while he was eating!”

“Um…” Iruka tried to think back but he had been so focused on their little competition that trying to get a peek under Kakashi’s mask hadn’t even crossed his mind. “I didn’t. We were enjoying each other’s company too much for that.” 

“Iruka, that’s no excuse!” She whined out her words, shaking his arm slightly in reprimand. 

“Anko, you really think I would date someone and be more preoccupied with trying to get a look at their face?” 

For a moment Anko seemed to be trying to think of a time where Iruka might. When she came to the conclusion that he would never take advantage of someone like that she finally let go of Iruka’s arm and slumped back into her chair, defeated. “No. You’re boring like that.”

“Amazing is the word you were looking for, not boring.” Kakashi finally returned with their drinks, looking at Iruka like he hung the moon. He set down their drinks and took a seat next to Iruka, not taking his eyes off the teacher for a second.  Iruka turned away slightly to hide the blush that was burning on his cheeks. “It’s not that amazing. It’s common decency.”

“That’s something I don’t often receive.” Kakashi’s voice was faint but somehow still rang in Iruka’s ears. Of course, with Anko sitting next to them, their quiet moment didn’t last long. 

“Alright you two, enough with the gooey shit. I wanna start singing!” 

The rest of the night was spent dodging Anko’s attempts to get them to sing, while simultaneously watching her duet with everyone who was willing. It surprised Iruka that so many patrons agreed to the manic woman’s demands but at the same time, her persuasive tactics were that of legend. It was hard to say no when a kunoichi known for her skills in the torture field asked something of you. 

After an hour of loud singing and quite a few drinks they were finally able to tear Anko away from the stage. She likely would have protested more but the alcohol and time of night were clearly getting to her, something that Iruka happily took advantage of. He steered her out of the bar while Kakashi followed behind with their takeout bags. With only a few stops and starts for Anko to loudly declare to the world that she was drunk and Iruka was dating again, they finally got her back to her apartment. Iruka did his best to tuck her in, all while she half heartedly fought him. Once she was settled Iruka darted back out to meet with Kakashi, where he was patiently waiting by her front door. 

“Sorry about Anko. I didn’t think she would go that far.” While Anko had no shame Iruka couldn’t help but be a bit embarrassed that his rather unhinged friend crashed his date. 

Kakashi, however, still didn’t seem to mind. He gave Iruka another one of those soft smiles and slowly reached out for his hand. “That’s alright. It was fun to see you get all riled up.”

“You don’t spend much time in the mission room do you?” Iruka joked as they began to walk back to his apartment. 

“Why do you say that?”

“Because I spend my entire shift riled up.”

The other man hummed in thought, idly rubbing his thumb along Iruka’s knuckles. “That’s stress related though, this was different. You care about her.”

“She’s one of my closest friends.” He knew his voice was overly fond but Anko really was part of his little handpicked family. In some ways it was good that she had crashed their date, at least now Iruka didn’t have to worry about introducing the two of them at a later, possibly more awkward, time. 

“It shows.”

The night ended with Kakashi walking Iruka all the way back to his front door. Their conversation on the way back had grown hushed as they discussed matters that were near and dear to the heart. As they walked, Iruka found himself pressing close to the other man and was delighted to see the blush it caused. Now they stood in front of Iruka’s apartment. Kakashi shifted from foot to foot, seemingly trying to figure out what to say and failing miserably. They were still holding hands, and Iruka smiled up at the other man, happy to see that the blush was permanent. 

“So…” Kakashi didn’t look up from his feet.

“So?” The grin Iruka was sporting was so wide it was almost painful. He would never let Kakashi live down just how shy he was after their first date, especially after everything they had gone through. Then again, they hadn’t truly been alone for most of their night and perhaps Kakashi had realized this as well. Standing in front of the door, they were finally by themselves. The weight of the moment was surprising, yet exciting. 

“I had a great time tonight.” Bashful Kakashi wasn’t something Iruka was ever going to get used to, but he enjoyed it all the same. The shy pleased voice, the gentle hand clutching his, the smile that could be heard but not seen. Iruka did his best to memorize every second of it, not knowing when he would get the chance to see Kakashi so expressive again. The man put on a façade for the village and while Iruka understood why, seeing Kakashi be himself was much more enjoyable. 

“Me too.” Iruka agreed to Kakashi’s statement, leaning slightly in towards the other man. Kakashi was none the wiser as he still refused to look up from the ground. 

“Do you think we could do this again?” 

Iruka nodded, seemingly in thought. “I’m sure I could be persuaded.” 

“How about next weekend? I found this little pond out by one of the less used training fields. We could take some food out there, make an afternoon of it?” When Kakashi’s eyes finally met his again Iruka was reminded of the way a dog looked at a treat or a particularly interesting toy. So excited, so honest in their intentions, so pure. Not how Iruka would have seen Kakashi a few years ago but now it was impossible to ignore.

“Alright, you’ve convinced me. I’m a sucker for afternoon pond adventures with food.” 

“Great! I’ll pick you up then!” It was flattering to be on the receiving end of such genuine excitement and Iruka decided to hide the warm feelings it evoked with snark. 

“And I’m sure I’ll see you before that. Funny how much you always seem to pop up whenever I need someone to walk home with me. What a gentleman.” His sass was followed up with a knowing grin. It’s not like Kakashi had been subtle. 

Kakashi grew even more flustered for having been called out. Iruka took pity on him and took a step forward. All of the taller man’s fidgeting stopped when Iruka entered his personal space. Slowly, so that Kakashi could easily move away if he wanted to, Iruka leaned in and gave the other man a gentle kiss on the cheek. He aimed for that tiny patch of skin that was visible but still ended up kissing the edge of the mask. 

Iruka moved away slowly. At first he was a little disappointed when Kakashi didn’t respond to the kiss but when he got a glimpse of the man’s face he could see why. Even with the mask Iruka could tell that Kakashi’s mouth was hanging open. All of the visible skin on his face was bright red. 

“Kakashi? You alright?” Iruka didn’t bother to keep his amusement out of his voice.

The other man nodded and blinked a few times. “Uh huh. I just- I wasn’t expecting that.”

Immediately Iruka jumped to the worst conclusion and took a step back, giving Kakashi plenty of space. It was always tricky to balance the boundaries of someone you were getting to know and Iruka could only assume he had crossed the line. “Did I move too fast? I’m sorry.”

“No! No, I liked it. A lot. I just thought you would be more…” Iruka knew what people assumed of him and while he didn’t mind, he was also happy to prove Kakashi wrong. 

“Reserved?”

“Yes.”

“Soft spoken?”

“Yes.”

“Innocent?”

“Yes.”

Iruka hummed in thought, then snuck forward lightning fast to give Kakashi one last kiss, this time where he hoped Kakashi’s lips were through the mask. He sent the other man a cheshire grin as he ducked out of range just as fast and opened the door. “You’re going to be in for a wild ride then. Goodnight Kakashi.”

Before Kakashi could respond Iruka darted inside. The second he closed the door he collapsed against it, giddy and flushed. He had another date with Kakashi. The infamous Copy-Nin, who carried his son on his shoulders whenever he picked Naruto up from school. Friend Killer Kakashi, who thought he was being sneaky when he paid for the check while Iruka had his back turned. Cold Blooded Kakashi, who hunted down the tackiest items possible for his apartment out of sheer love of their absurdity. There was no way this man could live up to the many names he had been called simply because none of them were accurate. Kakashi was anything but cold and after only one date Iruka was ready to fight the next person who tried to say Kakashi was a friend killer. 

A sudden realization came to his mind and Iruka wanted to smack himself for it. Oh god, Iruka had kissed Kakashi! He knew he was impulsive and thinking back, making an unexpected move like that towards a highly trained ninja was never a smart idea. In the future he knew he would need to do a better job of asking about boundaries and limitations, rather than letting himself get caught up in the fun of the night. Despite the fact that Kakashi had said he liked the first kiss, that didn’t mean Iruka should have gone for the second. He made up his mind quickly that the next date they had they would discuss boundaries and what their personal thresholds were.

His thoughts were interrupted when Genma turned the corner. Initially Iruka had planned to share everything that had happened on his date with his friend but the frown on Genma’s face had Iruka changing his mind in seconds. 

Assuming the worst, Iruka jumped to his feet, ready to run down the hall to find his little brother. “What happened, is everything alright? Where’s Sasuke?” Before he could get far Genma grabbed his arm, bringing him to a halt. 

Genma shook his head in response and motioned to the living room. Iruka followed the other man then compiled when the Genma gestured for him to sit on the couch. The frown that Genma wore only deepened and he crossed his arms over his chest. Iruka knew that look. He was about to get a lecture, on par with the ones he gave to misbehaving students. It didn’t escape Iruka that this situation was extremely ironic, although it did irritate him that he was on the receiving end. 

“Sasuke’s not too happy with you Iruka.” Not the words Iruka was expecting. 

“Why? Genma, what happened?”

Somehow Genma looked even more disappointed than before. “You forgot to tell him about your date.”

Iruka wracked his brain but for the life of him he couldn’t remember if he told Sasuke or not. Normally he would have trusted himself to have told Sasuke. Then again, he would have also said the same thing about respecting boundaries but apparently tonight he was really not doing well with any of that. “I could have sworn I told him before I left.”

“Maybe you didn’t make things clear with him, I don’t know.” Genma paused to let out a frustrated sigh. “What I do know is he’s been sulking in his room all night and refuses to come out.”

“Shit.” Thoughts swirled through Iruka’s head. This could set Sasuke back, this could damage the relationship they had both worked so hard on, this could have really hurt the boy. He wanted to jump up and make amends right away but Genma clearly wasn’t finished speaking. 

The other man didn’t seem to notice or care about Iruka’s worries. He plowed ahead, not giving Iruka time to spiral. “Yeah, my thoughts exactly. Turns out babysitting the brat is more fun when he doesn’t mind talking to you. That stony silence hurts.”

“I’m sorry about all this Genma. You can head home, I’ll go talk to him.” Iruka took a second to examine his friend but only felt worse for it. There were dark circles under his eyes and his uniform was heavily wrinkled, almost as if he had spent most of the night camped in the hallway outside Sasuke’s door, trying to get the boy to talk.

Genma nodded. “Alright. And Iruka? Keep me posted ok? I don’t know how but that little monster has wormed his way into my heart, and I don’t want to see him hurt. You need to make things right.”

“I will. Thanks again Genma.” He walked Genma to the door, then waved goodbye and waited until the other man was out of sight. 

With the other man gone Iruka closed the door and took a deep breath to steel himself for what was to come. He predicted a few days of the cold shoulder before Sasuke blew up at him. Still, he was going to try and speak to the boy now. The least he could do was apologize after causing Sasuke so much unnecessary stress.

He made his way through the apartment, only stopping when he stood in front of Sasuke’s door. There was no noise coming from the room but Iruka could feel the brooding energy from the hallway.

“Sasuke? I’m home. If it’s alright I’d like to talk with you and apologize for my behavior earlier.” Iruka wasn’t expecting the door to swing open, but Sasuke's deeply set frown wasn’t a surprise. 

“I’m sorry Sasuke. I should have told you about my date with Kakashi. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Well you did.” Iruka winced at the icy tone. At least they were talking. 

“I’m sorry.” Those simple words were enough to set Sasuke off. 

"That’s not good enough! You didn't say anything! You made all these plans and I didn't know and it made me feel stupid!" By the end of his shouting Sasuke’s face was red from exertion and he was panting to try and get his breath back. Iruka was dumbstruck, both by the outburst and Sasuke's admittance to feeling something negative. The boy was still rather closed off and Iruka sometimes waited hours before Sasuke finally told him what was wrong. It showed amazing growth in terms of Sasuke’s communication skills even though Iruka felt awful about the circumstances that brought it on. 

"Sasuke, I'm so sorry. I should have told you everything in advance and I have no excuse for not doing that. Just because I got caught up in my excitement doesn't mean I shouldn't keep you informed."

"Your right about that," Sasuke mumbled under his breath while kicking at the floor. He kept his eyes down, not meeting Iruka's gaze. The older man continued to speak, determined to set things right.

"In the future I'll make sure to tell you when plans change right away. And I'd like to make it up to you. Whatever you want to do, all weekend long."

Sasuke looked up, his lips twisted in a mischievous grin. "What if I want to paint the Hokage monument and moon the ANBU that come to stop me?" 

Iruka laughed and hung his head in mock shame. "I never should have told you that story!"

"Wow, you're on a roll tonight. You've been right twice now." 

Iruka smiled at the boy. Sasuke was back to snarking and being borderline intolerable. He had come so far and Iruka knew his next thoughts would embarrass the kid. So of course he said them out loud. 

"Hey Sasuke. I'm proud of you. You told me how you wanted to be treated and voiced how you felt. That's a hard skill to gain and I couldn't be more impressed with your communication."

Sasuke's mouth dropped open, jaw nearly hitting the floor. "But… but I was yelling at you."

"Yeah, but it's what you were saying that mattered. Yelling doesn't serve as the best delivery but I'm glad you didn't let these thoughts stew. Instead you told me right away. It shows me how much you've grown." 

The boy smiled but tried to hide it by rolling his eyes. “Gross. One date and you’re already turning into a huge sap.”

“Nah, I was always a sap. The people I care about just bring it out of me.” Iruka’s ability to turn any situation into a lesson was something all his friends knew about, but only those he was truly close to knew about Iruka’s power to make those lessons into corny declarations of love. He had been compared to Gai in the past but at the end of the day no one ever told him to stop. Turns out people liked hearing about how great Iruka thought they were and Sasuke was no exception. 

“I… I care about you too. That’s why it hurt so much.”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too. For yelling. And for being a jerk to Genma. Is there a way I can apologize to him soon? I should have at least talked to him a bit tonight instead of ignoring him.”

“He wants to know if you’re ok. Maybe we should swing by his place tomorrow with some food to surprise him? That way we can both apologize for worrying him.”

“Alright.”

The next day found Sasuke and Iruka at Genma’s door armed with enough food to feed the entire academy. Genma only rolled his eyes at them and invited them in to help him get through the massive amount of food. Both Sasuke and Iruka apologized, and after some awkward thanks from Genma all three of them tried to make a dent in the mountain of food with only limited success. As conversation took a turn for the mundane Iruka thought back to the day before. He had gone on a wonderful date with Kakashi, worried his little brother into a tantrum, and managed to get one of his most lighthearted friends to turn serious. Despite all the upheaval Iruka couldn’t help but be proud of the people in his life. Sasuke was growing more every day and Genma actually admitting that he cared about something must have been difficult for the usually impartial man. As for Kakashi, Iruka knew that their relationship was still in its early stages. Even so, there was a glimmering of something special growing there that Iruka couldn’t wait to explore. 


	9. I Told You They Were Organized

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm always so blown away by how much support this story is getting! Thank you all for the kudos, comments, and love! I appreciate it so much!

It was a few dates later when Iruka decided to broach the subject of their kids with Kakashi. While they spoke of their children regularly, often gushing about how amazing and talented they were, neither one of them had yet spoken about the kids maybe getting to know the other. Naruto only knew Iruka as his teacher and Sasuke’s brief encounters with Kakashi were always tense and uncomfortable for all involved parties. Iruka wanted to rectify that. He knew that the kids were just too important to both parties to leave the situation as it was for long. 

As Iruka and Kakashi grew closer Iruka started to consider their future together. Naruto and Sasuke were both in the same class but so far the teacher had seen them interact very little. If the two boys didn’t get along Iruka wasn’t sure what would become of his relationship. After all, both men put their kids above all else. On the off chance that Naruto and Sasuke truly hated each other it would likely mean the end of dates with Kakashi. It would be for the best, but the thought stung. 

When he finally gathered the courage to bring the topic up with Kakashi, he was happy to hear that he and the other man were on the same page. As the other man put it, Naruto had a knack for befriending anyone but it would be their luck if he and Sasuke hated each other. Despite their worries, Iruka knew it was important to see if the boys got along, and sooner rather than later. 

They planned for an easy dinner at Iruka’s place so that Sasuke would be in a familiar environment. When Kakashi arrived with Naruto, Iruka sent the boy to help Sasuke with some basic dinner preparations. Then, because both adults were rather nosy, they not too subtly watched the boys through the kitchen doorway. There were a few tense minutes while the boys exchanged greetings and bland conversation. However, after a few minutes, they were able to find something they both agreed on and both kids started talking animatedly with each other. Reassured by this, Iruka and Kakashi started to set up the dining room table, then switched places with Naruto and Sasuke when they were ready to finish dinner. It went quickly with all the preparations that the boys did and soon enough they were all seated at the table with a steaming meal before them. 

“Alright kids, dig in!” Sasuke gave Iruka a quiet thank you. Right as Naruto was about to start shoveling food into his mouth Kakashi cleared his throat, bringing attention to him. He raised a silver eyebrow at the boy and Naruto nodded with understanding. 

“Thanks Iruka-sensei!”

The pure enthusiasm gave Iruka a laugh. “I’m not your teacher here, Naruto. No need to be so formal!”

“Ok!”

Kakashi and Iruka fell into easy conversation, swapping child-friendly stories with each other. The boys stayed relatively quiet, although the longer the meal dragged on, the more Iruka noticed the kids exchanging glances at each other. Sometimes faces too. However, none of it seemed terribly out of the ordinary for the two and it brought the teacher some relief to see them getting along so well already. It was when they started making noise that he grew suspicious. 

In the beginning it seemed innocent enough. Naruto gave a little huff after a comment his father made about Iruka’s workplace, but the boy quickly apologized then lowered his head to look at his plate. Iruka was willing to write this off until Sasuke snorted after Kakashi finished speaking some time later. He turned sharp eyes to the boy but Sasuke was already looking away. The way he was picking at his cuticles suggested nothing had happened. Iruka wasn’t easily convinced, however, he was willing to let it go. That is, until the pattern continued. After three more interruptions he sent Kakashi a knowing look, then turned to face the boys. 

“You two wanna let us in on the joke?” Utensils were slowly put down and while Naruto had the decency to look guilty at being caught, Sasuke had a much better poker face. 

“What joke?” The dark haired boy asked. 

Iruka didn’t bother to hide his frown. “You know what I’m talking about.” 

“It’s not like we were doing anything wrong.” It was as close to an admission as he was going to get from Sasuke, which meant the boy wouldn’t be willing to give away anything else.

Knowing he would get more information from Naruto, Iruka turned to the blonde boy. “Interrupting is a bit rude, isn’t it?” 

“We never interrupted anyone!” The lie was obvious to everyone in the room. Kakashi winced, no doubt planning how to best teach Naruto about the art of deception without making Iruka’s classroom life hell.

“Then what was with all the noise?” Iruka continued to push. 

When the blonde gave a weak shrug, seemingly not knowing how to respond, the teacher turned to his child. Sasuke lowered his head, mumbling towards the ground. “It wasn’t even that loud.” 

Seeing that interrogating the boys wasn’t getting him anywhere, Iruka tried for a different approach. Sometimes you really did catch more with honey than vinegar, especially when dealing with children. “If you two are having a problem I would like to know so I can help.” 

This finally hit home with Sasuke, as the boy’s head shot up, his eyes wide and defiant. “That’s the problem right there!” 

“What is?” The brunette kept his tone calm. While he wanted to scold Sasuke for shouting at the dinner table he also knew this was his chance to get to the bottom of the situation. 

“You’re so nice! You’re always helping everyone and you do it without complaining.” The more Sasuke spoke the more confused Iruka became. 

“That’s a problem?” 

“No, but it means you’re too good for someone like Kakashi!” At this Sasuke stood up and pointed at the man in question.

“What?” The words caught Iruka off guard and Sasuke used that time to reiterate his point. 

“You’re too good for him! He’s a lazy moldy topped bean pole and you can do way better than him!”

When Iruka finally recovered from his shock he stood up as well and crossed his arms over his chest, taking the stance of scolding teacher with ease. “Sasuke, that’s very rude!”

“He’s right.” While he had been expecting some backlash from Sasuke, Iruka couldn’t say he was expecting Naruto to agree with such a harsh statement about the man who raised him.

“Naruto! That’s your father you’re talking about!”

Naruto jumped up out of his chair and moved to stand next to Sasuke as a united force. “But Kashi reads pervy books and you’re too nice for that Iruka-sensei!” 

The revelation had Iruka turning to Kakashi, a vein in his forehead already verging on popping. Wild behavior from the boys was expected but he hadn’t accounted for Naruto having dirt on Kakashi, especially something like that. “You read porn in front of him!”

Kakashi sunk into his chair and refused to meet Iruka’s fury head on. Instead he turned to his child, looking both betrayed and pissed. “Naruto, you and I are going to have a talk when we get home.”

With the display, Sasuke perked up and waved his hand rapidly between the two men. “See, I told you! You’re too good for him!”

“Sasuke, stop saying that!” Iruka could feel his irritation mounting as the situation steadily grew out of hand. 

“Why should I? It’s the truth!” Those simple words coming from Sasuke were enough to finally make Iruka snap. To think that Sasuke felt so differently than Iruka about Kakashi, the man Iruka was slowly growing to love, hurt too much to bear. The conversation was going to come to an end, it just had to. 

“It’s not the truth! I’m not better than him!” All eyes turned to Iruka. They were used to the man being angry but they weren’t used to this frustrated, wounded tone. Iruka looked up, not realizing he had tightly closed his eyes in the heat of the moment. Tears gathered at the corners of his eyes and while he tried to blink them away quickly he knew everyone in the room had seen them. The group spent a few moments in complete silence, the boys still trying to process what was happening and Iruka trying his best to calm down. When Kakashi broke the silence, Iruka started to wish they had come up with a different plan for the kids to meet, one that hadn’t led to this. 

“It’s not?” If Iruka’s tone was hurt, Kakashi’s was heartbroken. He sounded so sure that the statement was true, as if questioning it was ridiculous. Iruka turned to face the other man, then slowly sat down once more and reached out to grab Kakashi’s hands. 

“Kakashi. Please tell me you don’t believe what they’re saying.” 

“Well, I can see where they’re coming from.” The older man sunk lower into his chair but Iruka’s gentle grip stopped him from escaping completely. 

“Kakashi, I say this with nothing but fondness but you’re kind of an idiot sometimes. Do you really think I would be interested in someone unless I saw something good in them? Or better yet, something amazing? You are a truly wonderful person, the kind of person that I happily spend my time with. The kind of person I can see having a future with. I don’t think one of us is better than the other. Instead I believe that we compliment each other and bring out the best in the other person. I wouldn’t still be here if I didn’t believe that and I certainly wouldn’t let someone I didn’t trust with my whole heart around Sasuke.”

Kakashi kept his head down. For a few long minutes there was no movement or sound, even from the rambunctious boys. It took Iruka giving Kakashi’s hands a soft squeeze in reassurance to finally get the other man to react. Slowly Kakashi lifted his head up and a smile could be seen forming even through the mask on his face. “You always know what to say, don’t you?”

Iruka returned the smile and pulled Kakashi up to sit in his chair properly. “Comes with being a teacher. Now, we have some apologies to wrangle out of our kids. Sasuke, you first.” 

His eyes were wide but after watching how Iruka treated Kakashi and listening to his little speech Sasuke knew better than to question his brother’s wishes. “I… I’m sorry Kakashi.”

Iruka wasn’t willing to let the kid go that easily. He knew he needed to be firm with the boy, otherwise Sasuke would continue to torment Kakashi. At first it was slightly comical but Sasuke’s biased dislike for the man had quickly grown tiring. “What are you sorry for?” 

“For saying that you’re too good for Iruka and for interrupting you earlier.” Sasuke lowered his head, likely out of embarrassment more than shame. Later Iruka would check in with the boy to make sure they were on the same page but at the moment he was more interested in returning some order to the group. 

“Thank you. Now it’s your turn Naruto.”

Naruto was much faster to apologize, even going so far as to tackle hug Kakashi. “I’m sorry Dad! I didn’t mean to make you sad. You're really good, I promise. I just didn’t understand how you and Iruka worked together but now I do and I’m really sorry about everything.” 

Kakashi held the boy close, gently petting the top of Naruto’s head. “I forgive you both. Thank you for apologizing.” 

After a few moments Naruto sat back down in his chair and Sasuke followed his lead. Once they were back where they started Iruka turned to address the kids. “Now boys, I know this is a bit strange and new but I want you two to understand something. Neither Kakashi nor myself would date another person if we didn’t take everything into consideration. We genuinely care about each other and think that we could one day make a family together.”

Naruto’s eyes grew wide and they all watched as the boy rapidly looked back and forth to Kakashi, Iruka, and Sasuke. While the teacher saw kids have realizations every day there was something about watching Naruto connecting the dots that always made Iruka smile. The boy practically lit up the room. “Wait. All of us? A family?” 

“If everything works out, yes. I certainly don’t mind the idea.” Iruka glanced over to Kakashi as he spoke, not bothering to hide his smile. In the meantime, Naruto was getting more excited by the second.

“That sounds awesome! Sasuke, did you hear that? You could be my brother!” The dark haired boy turned to watch Naruto practically vibrate out of his chair. Iruka could tell Sasuke was actively trying to not let his lip curl in disdain. Apparently the truce the boys had in place was only been a means to an end. Now that Iruka had firmly stated that he wasn’t going to stop dating Kakashi for Sasuke’s petty reasons he had gone back to being overly wary of the blonde boy. 

“I heard, you don’t need to shout.” Just to further prove his point Sasuke scooted his chair away from the other boy. Naruto didn’t seem to notice or care about the lack of enthusiasm. 

“That’s so cool, I’ve never had a brother before!” For a moment Iruka feared that the thoughtless mention would bring up bad memories for Sasuke, but the other boy didn’t seem too upset, if the snotty huff he gave in reply was anything to go by. 

“It’s not that big of a deal.”

Naruto obviously disagreed. “It’s a huge deal! We could hang out all the time and help each other train and do everything together!”

That gave Sasuke pause. He looked over to the adults at the table, desperate for some kind of direction but Iruka just gave the boy a small smile and nod. From their conversations Iruka knew that Naruto had just laid out everything Sasuke could ever want in a brother. Someone to share special moments with, someone who wanted to stand by his side and support him through difficult times. Iruka had been acting as Sasuke’s brother but he couldn’t quite fit the role - not as well as Naruto could. Now though, it was Sasuke 's turn to open up and accept that he could still have what he wanted in life, even after going through the trauma of having it snatched away so quickly. 

After too long of a pause Sasuke finally gave a singular nod, causing Naruto’s smile to grow into a grin. “I… I guess that doesn’t sound terrible.” 

\---------------

A few weeks later Iruka and Kakashi decided to try to have the kids spend time together again. This time yielded much better results with Naruto jumping into the conversation at times, all three of them even getting a good laugh in. Sasuke was still reserved but there were moments when even he couldn’t help but smile. It pained him to admit it but he could see why Iruka was so determined to make his relationship with Kakashi work. The other man had a good sense of humor and he worked well with Iruka, when they weren’t bickering that is. 

After dinner Sasuke and Naruto were sent to do their homework in the living room. Iruka was obviously hoping that the two of them would become friends. While Sasuke had no interest in being buddy-buddy with Naruto, he was willing to at least spend time with the other boy. That’s why, when Naruto started to groan in frustration, Sasuke held back his immediate snarky response and instead tried to ask what was wrong. 

“It’s just this homework. It doesn’t make any sense!” The other boy had his hands fisted in his hair, ready to pull clumps of blonde out. As Sasuke had helped clean up earlier that day he wanted to avoid a mess, or at least that was the excuse he made for himself when he continued the conversation. 

“You mean the chakra lesson? Iruka did an entire presentation on it earlier today.” From Sasuke’s point of view it really wasn’t too difficult. In fact, he had already known everything in the lesson and spent most of the class period reading ahead in the textbook.

“Yeah, I know. Sometimes things just don’t click for me right away. Kashi says I’m a physical learner, that I learn by doing things.” To articulate this Naruto waved his hands around, narrowly missing hitting Sasuke in the face.

“Kind of hard to make this into something you can do.” If he sounded a bit irritated, Sasuke would blame the fact that this conversation had already gone on too long and that he had almost been hit for his troubles. Yes, Naruto had been willing to team up with him for the sake of Iruka’s virtue but that plan was now firmly off the table and the blonde had gone right back to being too energetic and happy-go-lucky for Sasuke’s tastes.

“I know. Dad tries his best but it’s tough sometimes. There are things you kind of just have to know but it’s hard to know them if they don’t make sense.” With one last sigh Naruto collapsed face first onto the table. He stayed there for a few minutes and for some reason Sasuke found that he couldn’t just go back to his homework. Despite the fact that Naruto was being quiet, he was somehow still distracting. After a few moments of thought, Sasuke determined that the only way to fix the situation was to help. The dark haired boy did some brainstorming, came up with a quick solution to their problem, and was on his feet before he could think to stop himself. 

“Hang on for a moment. I’ll be right back.” Sasuke darted into the kitchen and rooted around in the pantry for a moment. Since Kakashi and Naruto were becoming a more permanent fixture in their lives, Iruka started stocking up on foods the others would like. This meant that there were now a few packages of instant ramen tucked away on a far shelf in the pantry. While Iruka still didn’t like the idea of processed noodles, he was kind enough to buy them for Naruto. 

Sasuke grabbed a package, as well as a few different ingredients, before returning to the living room. The second Naruto saw the ramen package he sat up with his back ramrod straight, already paying more attention. Quickly Sasuke lined up everything in front of them on the table, then sat down on the floor next to Naruto. 

“So, see this?” Sasuke gestured to the table in front of him. “This is all the stuff to make ramen, right?” 

Naruto nodded, unsure of what exactly was going on but Sasuke had his full attention. The hope in Naruto’s eyes made them shine brightly, to the point that the brunette had to turn back to the table just to avoid being blinded.

“This pack of ramen is essential to making the noodles right? You need everything in here to make the soup.” He held up the package to make his point clear. 

“Right! If you didn’t have the noodles or the seasoning you wouldn’t have ramen!” 

“But something is missing, right? You don’t have water. If you don’t have water then you can’t make ramen.” To make his point more clear Sasuke gestured to the table to clearly show that there was no water available to them. 

“Yeah, yeah!” Naruto nodded furiously, his whole body bobbing with the action. 

“So if we compare this to what we are learning, the package of ramen is the chakra and the water is our ability to access it to perform jutsu. We’re ninja so we can all do this, but everyone’s water is probably going to be a slightly different temperature. That means that some people’s ramen will finish faster than others.” He turned to Naruto once he was done explaining. The other boy gave his temple a scratch as he absorbed the information. 

“Ok… so if your water is boiling but mine is only warm then my ramen will take longer to finish.”

Sasuke hummed in agreement. “In context to the homework, some people have an easier time accessing their chakra than others. We all can, just to different degrees. Are you understanding so far?”

“I think so.” While the other boy’s eyes were darting between his notes and the ramen ingredients, he sounded sure of himself. Sasuke wasn’t convinced.

“Repeat it to me.”

“Hm… Charka is in all of us, but we need to access it to perform jutsu. Everyone has different abilities, so sometimes it’s harder for some people to access it.” It wasn’t a very detailed answer but it was enough to prove that Naruto understood the basics. 

“That’s right. Now the other part of this lesson. Let’s say we have a finished bowl of ramen.” 

Naruto perked up, giving Sasuke his undivided attention. “I’m listening.” 

The dark haired boy tried to ignore the intensity of Naruto’s gaze. In the back of his mind Sasuke decided that he would never come between Naruto and a bowl of ramen. He did his best to continue the lesson, hoping it would distract Naruto from the mentioned finished bowl of ramen. “There are a lot of different things you can add to ramen right? Like, you can add this soy sauce if you like it saltier, or you could add this sriracha if you like it spicier. None of this is required but everyone will probably have different preferences, right? And it can make it taste better for our individual palates if we add in different things.”

“Yeah! I like pork in my ramen but Kashi likes an egg!” The explanation came with lots of hand waving. Sasuke had to grab a few different bottles to keep them from falling over. As oblivious as he was, Naruto didn’t miss Sasuke’s irritated eye twitch. He gave the boy a quick sorry and lowered his head. Once the blonde calmed down a bit Sasuke continued. 

“Those are both preferences. It doesn’t mean that you can’t eat the other toppings, just that you like those the most. Let’s compare all of this to what we’re learning. Let’s say the pork is the earth elemental jutsu and the egg is the lightning elemental jutsu.”

Naruto surprised him by interrupting to finish Sasuke’s thought. “That means in this example I would be good at earth style right? And Kashi would be good at lightning style?”

“Exactly.” There was a pause while Naruto absorbed the information. Sasuke could tell the moment he had a question, as his entire posture shifted from curled over to think to sitting straight up with eagerness. 

“But you can switch around toppings. Like, I’ll still eat an egg if someone puts it in my bowl, I just won’t like it as much.”

“Good point. Just because you favor earth style doesn’t mean you can’t perform lightning style jutsus. It just means that it might not be the best match for your chakra or that you might not be as good at it.” 

“Wow… suddenly this all makes so much sense.” The smile Sasuke received shined too brightly and he hid from it by responding with a grumble. 

“All I had to do was raid the pantry, apparently.”

“I wish all lessons were like this!” 

From the other room the boys could hear Iruka chuckle. The teacher shouted “Keep dreaming!” which caused Sasuke’s lesson to dissolve into joking arguments and laughter.

Naruto and Kakashi stayed for another hour but when the boy started to yawn Kakashi gathered their belongings and they said their goodbyes. After doing some clean up from dinner Iruka met Sasuke in the living room, where there were still items from the pantry scattered on the low table. The boy stared at the items, feeling unsettled. 

“You alright, Sasuke?” Iruka was always too perceptive so Sasuke didn’t bother to hide how he felt. Instead he chose to come right out and say what was on his mind. 

“He’s… he’s different than what I’m used to.” A gesture at the table was enough to clue Iruka in on the topic of their discussion.

“Because of how energetic he is?” The man asked as he sat down next to Sasuke on the floor. 

Sasuke shrugged and reached out to fidget with an unopened bottle of soy sauce. “That’s part of it I guess. He’s very shiny. Does that make sense?”

“It does. Naruto’s personality shines through at all times. It’s glaringly obvious to anyone who meets him that he’s the kind of person that can find the silver lining to any cloud.” The boy nodded along to this. It wasn’t a bad way to look at it but to Sasuke people like that were foreign. 

“It’s hard to look at him sometimes. Because of that. I’m not used to people being so positive.” 

“Being positive isn’t a bad thing.” After years of living with Iruka, Sasuke had gotten used to this. The man would use a simple statement to leave a discussion open, allowing Sasuke to choose how he wanted to continue the conversation, if at all. Tonight, however, he wasn’t going to take the offered exit. He wanted Iruka to understand how he felt. 

“No, it’s not. It’s just strange. My family was much more focused on clan honor and things like that. I had to live up to a standard. Naruto… He’s only ever had to do his best.” 

Iruka hummed in agreement. “Your backgrounds are very different.” 

Sasuke thought about what had been said so far, taking a few minutes to consider exactly what he wanted to say. Naruto was everything he wasn’t and yet something about the blonde was so hopeful. It was infectious. It made Sasuke want to be hopeful too, even if that meant letting go of some of his standards. “Is it weird if I want to be more like him? More positive?”

“I think that’s up to you. And I’ll support you in whoever you want to be.” The boy gave Iruka a tiny smile and nod. Sometimes the man was just too predictable, but it was also rather comforting. Sasuke never had to ask if Iruka supported him, as his brother gave him that support constantly. At this point it didn’t even need to be said out loud, although it was always still nice to hear. 

“I know.” Sasuke paused, mulling over his words before continuing to speak. “I’ve never thought about my attitude or how I acted before. I followed the rules and acted like I was supposed to because that’s what my family told me to do. Then when you adopted me you gave me more freedom with how I acted, so long as I didn’t get in trouble. I didn’t really bother thinking about what to do with that freedom, though. Not until now.”

“Naruto can be very influential.” Iruka suddenly perked up and turned to Sasuke with a smile. “I actually wanted to thank you.”

“For what?” 

“For sitting down to teach Naruto more about the lesson. I know it wasn’t how you wanted to spend the evening.”

In the name of trying to be more positive Sasuke didn’t bother to try and hold back his response. “Actually, it was kind of fun. I never thought about chakra that way until Naruto brought up needing to learn a different way.”

“Almost sounds like you’re starting to like him.”

“He’s… less annoying now.” Iruka let out a laugh and rustled Sasuke’s hair. Sasuke would be lying to himself if he said he didn't like when Iruka showed him affection, although he still faked a dodge, on principle alone. 

“I’m going to choose to call that progress.”

\---------------

When Iruka asked Sasuke if Hinata and Shino were coming over that weekend he didn’t think much of it. After all, Iruka would need to know to have enough food prepared for all of them. Now, standing next to Shino and Hinata with Naruto, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Choji across from them, he could see that his guardian had ulterior motives. 

Naruto, always the one to try and make everyone get along, gave the kids across from him a wide grin. Sasuke would have believed it was genuine except for Naruto’s fidgeting. He only did that when he was nervous. “Hey guys. Guess we’re all hanging out at the park today?” 

There were multiple huffs and groans at his question. Sasuke watched Naruto’s shoulders slouch slightly. While he still wasn’t the other boy’s biggest fan, Sasuke could sympathize with his diplomatic nature. Things were a lot easier when everyone got along. 

“It looks like Kakashi and Iruka planned today so that Naruto’s friends and my friends could spend some time together to get to know each other. It’s not Naruto’s fault that his dad and my brother are conspiring against us.” Sasuke surprised himself by coming to the blonde’s defense but it earned him a nod from Shikamaru, despite the fact that the other boy was one of the people that groaned earlier. 

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news then, but two more people are gonna be joining us.” Shikamaru gave Sasuke a look that was strangely apologetic before he turned to look down the street over the Uchiha's shoulder. 

A loud exclamation and cheer rose from behind Sasuke, one that sent ice cold daggers shooting through his veins. He knew that voice, he recognized that sound. The fan girls were coming. 

“Sasuke! I didn’t know that you would be joining us today!” While he was relieved to see it was only two, Ino and Sakura, it still unnerved Sasuke that they had such perfect timing. He turned back to Shikamaru, ready to demand answers but the other boy held his hand up to motion for Sasuke to let him speak. 

“My mom asked me if Ino and her friend could hang out with me today. I didn’t know there would be more of us or I would have told her I already had plans.”

“Shikamaru, that’s so rude! I’m more than happy to spend time with Sasuke!” At Ino’s words Sasuke took a step to the side, right into Shino’s personal space. Usually the other boy was quite particular about having room around him to move at all times but today Shino must have sensed Sasuke’s discomfort. Not one for subtly, the Aburame walked until he was directly between his friend and the two girls. Hinata took a step closer to Sasuke, ready to jump to his aid if he needed it. 

Naruto chose this time to try and break the ice, likely sensing the rising tension between the Uchiha’s friends and the raving girls. 

“How about we play a game?” The words came out stiffly but still did a good job of pulling attention away from Sasuke. All eyes turned to Naruto, but Sasuke made sure to give the boy a grateful nod as the tension broke. 

“What kind of game?” Hinata, the next best mediator of the group, quickly responded to Naruto’s question. Sasuke knew she wanted to distract everyone from his dilemma but also was happy to have some of Naruto’s attention as well. Her crush on him was obvious to everyone but Naruto, although the Uchiha could tell it wasn’t as strong as it used to be. By the time they graduated he was sure it would have fizzled out in exchange for concentrating on her training. 

The kids spent a few seconds glancing around at each other and the park before Choji piped up. “What about capture the flag? I can be the judge to make tough calls because there’s one too many of us to split into even teams.” A few members of the group glanced at Choji’s potato chip bag but nobody commented on what were likely the boy’s real intentions. 

“How can we know you will be a fair judge? You are friends with three of the nine of us here.” Shino made a fair point but Shikamaru rolled his eyes at the boy's skepticism. 

“You don’t have to worry about that. Choji’s pretty honest and he doesn’t pick favorites.” This seemed to settle Shino’s doubts and soon enough the entire group was nodding in agreement. 

That didn’t mean there weren’t still details to figure out. Kiba quickly brought up the next problem they needed to solve. “What about team captains? Because I say I should be put in charge!” Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto all winced at the suggestion. 

Ino had a very different idea. “I think Sasuke should be a captain! He would make a great team leader.” Her voice got dreamy at the end but Sasuke didn’t mind the idea of being a captain; it meant he could choose people other than Ino and Sakura. 

“I don’t mind being a captain, so long as Shikamaru is the other captain.” Sasuke could hear Ino starting to complain about Shikamaru being in charge but when the Uchiha turned to her with an eyebrow raised she stopped in her tracks and started nodding along instead. Shikamaru muttered under his breath but eventually agreed. 

The group split up, with captains moving off to talk about what they could use as flags while the rest of the kids lined up, ready for teams to be picked. Naruto was the only one who didn’t line up. Instead he patiently waited for Sasuke and Shikamaru to finish talking before he walked over to the other boys. 

"Hey Sasuke, I need to talk with you for a second." Naruto pulled Sasuke to the side, promising Shikamaru that they would be back quickly. 

Once they were out of hearing distance the dark haired boy turned to Naruto. "Yeah, what is it?" 

"Don't let Sakura get picked last." Sasuke's eyes went wide at such a serious demand, but Naruto held his ground. 

"What?"

"Please don't let her be picked last. I know you don't like her because she's part of your fan club or whatever but I think she would be really hurt if she got picked last. The only person she's friends with here is Ino so Shikamaru probably won't pick her." Sasuke thought back to the conversations the group had. It didn’t take long for him to realize that Sakura hadn’t said a word the entire time. She had hung back behind Ino and went along with whatever the blonde wanted. In class Sakura could be rather bossy but right now she was surrounded by people that she didn’t know. 

"And if you get picked last instead?" It seemed like a valid question and one that might distract Naruto from his request. 

Naruto shrugged. "I don't really care when I get picked but I know Sakura cares. She's worried she'll be picked last or left out. Please just make sure she feels included."

Sasuke sighed. The blonde’s empathy was going to be the bane of his existence if it led to more situations like this. "This really means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

"Yes."

"Ugh. Fine. But don't say I never do anything for you."

"Well, seeing how this is the first time you've done anything for me." Naruto sent him a sly grin.

The Uchiha gave him a playful punch on the arm in response. They jogged over to rejoin the group, Naruto lining up with the other kids and Sasuke taking his place next to Shikamaru as a team captain. He gestured for Shikamaru to pick first and was surprised by his choice.

“Shino.” The dark haired boy in question was clearly surprised, if the way his eyebrows rose up into his hairline was any indication. Despite the turn of events he didn’t waste time. Once Shino was situated beside Shikamaru, Sasuke decided to shock the entire group and follow through with Naruto’s request.

“Sakura.” All eyes turned to Sasuke, then to Sakura. The girl’s mouth was hanging open but an impatient grunt from the Uchiha had her darting over to stand by his side. Shikamaru’s eyes narrowed and focused on the other captain. After a minute of hard thinking he turned back to face the group.

“Ino.” 

Sasuke retaliated with his next choice. A wild card for a wild card. “Kiba.” 

“Hinata.” The girl glanced over to Sasuke, mouthed a quick sorry then took her place with Shikamaru’s group. 

As the Uchiha had predicted the blonde boy had been left for last, but the thumbs up he got in response was overwhelmingly positive. Sasuke rolled his eyes and called the dorks name. “Naruto.” 

Choji nodded to the two groups, then held out the makeshift flags. Sasuke took Choji’s scarf while Shikamaru grabbed Sakura’s long red ribbon. Both would be easily seen in the forest that was behind the park. Once both teams had their flags Choji stood back and went over the basic rules.

“Hm… no extreme force because this is a game. Nobody should get hurt today.” Three sets of eyes turned to Kiba, who had the decency to blush and look away. “Other than that, the rules are pretty simple! Both teams have a flag. They’ll set up the flag on opposing sides of the forest, then the other team will try to steal it. Get the other teams flag back to your base without losing your flag and you win! Simple enough.”

“Any boundaries?” Shikamaru asked.

The larger boy thought for a moment then nodded to himself, decision made. “Don’t go too far away. If I shout and you can’t hear me you’ve gone too far.”

“That’s vague.” Choji just shrugged in reply to Sasuke’s comment. 

“I’ll give you guys five minutes to plan and place your flags then we’ll start. Remember the flag can be mostly hidden but it has to be visible in some way. Team members should stay ten feet away from the flag until it’s stolen by the enemy team and yes, you can steal it back but you have to hide it in the same place. Should we use the tag rule or no?” 

Hinata seemed confused by the question. She hadn’t played many games with large groups growing up due to her clan status. “Tag rule?”

Choji turned to her with a smile, happy to explain. “Yeah! So if we use the tag rule that would mean that the opposing team would be able to tag another person like this," Choji demonstrated by gently tapping Hinata on the arm, “to get them out. The person that got tagged would have to go to a place we’ll call jail and their team members would have to come tag them to get them out of jail. Does that make sense?”

The girl nodded and returned the smile. 

The other kids had all given it some thought and nodded along. Shikamaru sighed, knowing that instating a tag and jail system would mean the game would drag on even longer than usual. “So where’s the jail gonna be?” 

“The playground seems like the best bet.” Sasuke suggested. When nobody protested this both the referee and the other team captain voiced their agreement. 

“I think that’s it. You guys ready?” Choji asked. Sasuke took off before Choji could say anything else, Sakura and Kiba hot on his heels. Naruto rolled his eyes and ran to catch up. Seeing that the other team was getting ahead of them Ino dragged her team captain into the forest, berating him on not moving quickly enough. Hinata and Shino trailed behind, quietly discussing strategies. 

As Sasuke launched himself into the forest a grin stretched across his face. The teams were evenly balanced in terms of strengths and weaknesses. Shikamaru had no clue how to work with Hinata and Shino. He was too used to the rather wild energy of Naruto and Kiba. That also meant that Sasuke had the same disadvantage, he had no clue how to work with the two hyperactive boys. Both girls were wild cards, as they were friends but also somehow rivals. No team was overpowered in one way that the other team couldn’t easily counter. And best of all, Sasuke had seen the look Shikamaru had given him when picking team members. It was the studied gaze of someone who was planning to be fifteen steps ahead. Sasuke, however, had grown up first with the Uchiha and then with an academy teacher. If Shikamaru thought he could keep ahead with Sasuke as his opponent he had another thing coming. This was going to be fun.

\---------------

When he had been tasked with collecting the kids at the end of the day, Kakashi had made a show of grumbling and complaining. In reality he didn’t really mind as it gave him an excuse to dodge other responsibilities and spend time with Naruto. He had a reputation of being a lazy nin to uphold, although the way Iruka rolled his eyes Kakashi didn’t know if he was fooling anyone but himself. 

Along the way to the playground Kakashi ran into Yoshino and Shibi Aburame. Yoshino happily picked up a conversation about what the kids had planned to do, according to Shikamaru, and the woman took wild guesses as to what actually happened. Nothing could have prepared the parents for what they found, however.

When they first arrived at the park they didn’t see a single kid. Thinking that the group might have wandered off to grab a snack with pocket money Kakashi and Yoshino started to walk down the road, only to be stopped by Shibi. 

“Look there.” The reclusive man pointed to the tree line. After spending a few seconds scanning the area a hint of purple could be seen from a high branch of an oak tree.

“Ino?” Yoshino wasted no time marching over to the hidden girl, ready to demand answers. 

Instead of explaining herself, Ino started to shoo them away when she spotted the adults. “You’ll give away my position!” Her words were hissed and quiet, but apparently the commotion had brought too much attention to the blonde. A shout could be heard coming from the left and the group turned to watch Kiba come running at the tree at top speeds. Ino cursed before jumping down. She took off into the forest, Kiba hot on her heels. Two more kids darted out to pursue her, although one that Kakashi instantly recognized stopped when he saw the group of adults. 

Sasuke quickly jogged over and provided the explanation everyone had been looking for. “We’re playing capture the flag and nobody’s won yet. Can we finish first?”

The silver haired man thought for a moment, before asking, “Who’s winning?”

“Nobody. That’s why we need to keep playing.” The boy seemed insistent on the matter but Kakashi knew who he would rather disappoint tonight and it certainly wasn’t going to be Iruka. The teacher got vindictive when he got mad.

“Sorry kiddo but Iruka wants you home for dinner.” And Kakashi wanted to stay in one piece, but he didn’t mention that to the kid.

Luckily Yoshino stepped in as well, backing up Kakashi’s statement. “And Ino’s parents are waiting for her as well.”

Sasuke nodded in understanding before running off again, presumably to put an end to the game. None of the parents were expecting to hear a loud bellow instead of Sasuke’s snarky voice, but it seemed to do the trick nonetheless. Kids started to appear out of the woodwork, climbing down from trees and out of bushes, some running up with faces bright red from exertion. They all lined up, with a few feet of space down the center of the line. Shikamaru and Sasuke stood in the middle, separating two different teams, each boy holding a piece of cloth.

“Were you kids training?” The question slipped out before Kakashi could stop it. The final member of the group jogged out of the forest, panting slightly. Choji, despite his struggle to breath properly, answered Kakashi with a smile on his face.

“No! We were playing capture the flag!”

“I’ve never seen a group of kids so… organized.” Shibi sounded impressed, but Kakashi couldn’t help but wonder if there was a hint of fear there as well. He couldn’t blame the other man, organized kids were so much scarier than chaotic kids. 

“How else would we win!” The shout came from Ino at Shikamaru’s side. While she seemed full of energy the boy next to her looked much too tired, and Yoshino seemed to agree. 

“Alright everyone, time to go home.” Her words brought a sigh of relief from her child, but a few of the more energetic kids started to complain. A singular glare from her silenced them. Their mouths shut with an audible click and they quickly nodded to agree. 

Shikamaru handed Sakura a long red ribbon before joining his mother. Sakura and Ino trailed along behind the group as they left, saying quick goodbyes to the remaining kids. Shibi offered to walk Hinata home. When he extended the offer to Kiba as well Shino’s eyebrow could be seen twitching slightly but as he didn’t voice a complaint the rambunctious Inuzuka joined them as they left. A voice from behind called to Choji and Kakashi watched as Chōza walked into the park to collect his son, who grabbed his scarf from Sasuke as he left. This left Kakashi with Naruto and Sasuke, both of whom were wearing wide smiles.

“Looks like you two had fun today.” Kakashi did nothing to hide the amusement in his voice, causing Naruto to finally lunge at his father for a hug.

“Yeah, we had a great time! I think we wore Shikamaru out but everyone got along and it turns out everyone can get really competitive and scary. That’s ok though because we all worked together really well and things are less scary when you have people on your side.”

The words reminded Kakashi of the team work test that he gave wannabe genin teams. Naruto, without a doubt, would pass with flying colors. Pride welled up in his chest and Kakashi gave his kid another squeeze before leading both boys home for the night. It was good to know Naruto had so many people on his side, even if they were scary enough to play like they were already fully fledged ninja.


	10. Meet Your New Team

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter up! And with this chapter I think I'm going to be taking a small hiatus. Recently I've been feeling pretty burnt out and I don't want to give you guys content that isn't at my level of quality, especially for my main work. I hope to be back after about a month but I'm going to take however long I need to recuperate and get things back on track. That being said I WILL be returning to this story. I already have everything plotted out and have a few sections that I'm very excited to get to. I just need to rest a bit first!

Standing in the Hokage’s office, Kakashi let his eyes wander around the room. He had been summoned early that morning. Thinking that it was for a mission he came right away, only to be disappointed when the Hokage took his time. Not a mission then, or at least not one that was time sensitive. More likely a meeting, and a boring one at that. 

“Oh, Kakashi. I’m glad you came so quickly. Good to see you understand the seriousness of this situation.” Kakashi stood up from his usual slouch, suddenly rethinking his initial assumption. 

“And what situation is that sir, if I might ask?” The older man hummed before pulling out a large folder, throwing it over to the other side of his desk. 

Kakashi looked down at the folder and rolled his eyes. He didn’t even bother picking it up; he knew what it was.

“A genin team? Really? Haven’t we been through this before? I’ll save you the trouble and fail them all now.”

The Hokage had the audacity to laugh. “Now, Kakashi. Don’t be too hasty. I think this team has a chance at surprising you.”

“Why do you say that?” Kakashi picked up the folder cautiously and opened it, took a glance at the three names listed at the top then promptly threw it back onto the Hokage’s desk.

“It’s a conflict of interest. Sorry, looks like I can’t take the team. You’ll have to find some other unsuspecting schmuck.”

“And why would it be a conflict of interest?” The Hokage’s tone was questioning, but his posture came off as confident. This sent Kakashi scrambling for an answer that would satisfy the older man.

“I mean, I’m practically the kid's uncle. I’m too closely related.” 

The Third made a show of thinking for a moment, going so far as to scratch at his chin, before replying. “You aren’t listed as the direct guardian nor as his emergency contact so the council and his teachers didn’t find a need to deny you this team.”

“But-I- I can’t!” Kakashi internally winced at the weak response. 

“Afraid they will pass your test?” the Hokage said while chuckling. 

“Yes, actually. Terrified.” Kakashi couldn’t imagine commanding such a team. The mere thought nearly sent him running for the hills.

“I’ll make a deal with you. You test them and if you deem them incompatible with your teaching methods I’ll send them onto a different instructor. However, I think they will all surprise you. Who knows, you might even grow to like them.”

“It’s not liking them that will be the problem… well, not for most of them.” Kakashi sent one last pleading look to the Hokage but the man wouldn’t budge. Defeated, the younger man picked the folder back up and left the office without another word. 

After a long, dejected trek back to his apartment Kakashi finally sat down at his desk, opened up the folder again, and pulled out the bios of the three students. Rock Lee, Neji Hyuga, and a girl Kakashi was unfamiliar with named Tenten. Each one excelled in specifics but ultimately failed to be balanced ninja at all. Lee could still only use taijutsu, even after being adopted by a jonin as a child. Neji was better off but was rather weak against genjutsu. Tenten seemed to have a knack for weapons but had no extraordinary skills outside of that. 

His head hit the table as Kakashi moaned in despair. This team was a wreck. It would take intense training just to get Lee caught up with the rest, then even more work to take the Hyuga down a peg, all while not letting Tenten fall behind. Worse of all, they all had personal notes left on their profiles that spoke of further problems. Lee didn’t just struggle with ninjutsu; his teachers had condemned him of being incapable of it at all. Tenten didn’t just specialize in weapons; she refused to learn anything else. Neji didn’t just have an ego; he wanted to do everything entirely alone. 

Even in his misery Kakashi couldn’t help but begin to plan. He told himself it was to keep Gai from crying because Kakashi failed them but deep down Kakashi saw three losers who had the potential to become three powerhouses. It was just a matter of breaking them down a bit to build them back up as stronger, more balanced shinobi. 

\---------------

“Stop laughing! Iruka, this isn’t funny.” 

Kakashi had come to his boyfriend, after trying to plan for a few hours, seeking help. After explaining the situation in detail Iruka had been silent for a moment before bursting into a hysterical laughter, one that had gone on for a few minutes and showed no sign of stopping. 

They were sitting at Iruka’s table, or rather, Kakashi was sitting at the table. Iruka was currently curled over a stack of papers that he had long since stopped grading in favor of getting a kick out of Kakashi’s struggles. In an attempt to quiet the brunette, the jonin made a grab for the papers, only to get swatted by Iruka in response. The teacher, however, did stop laughing and instead turned his attention to his grading while continuing the conversation Kakashi had tried to start. 

“I’m sorry, you just look so sad that these kids might pass.” The twitching of his lips told Kakashi that another laughing fit might start if he didn’t distract Iruka. He knew just the thing to prevent that though. 

“If they pass I won’t have as much free time.” Kakashi stated, but Iruka just rolled his eyes in response. 

“Yes, but you’ll be in the village more.” A few more papers were added to the finished stack as Iruka spoke. 

“Busy with students.” The older man pointed out. 

Iruka shrugged. “Only from 8 - 4 for the first few months.”

“I’ll come home irritable.” The sarcastic laugh was entirely unnecessary in Kakashi’s opinion and he slouched down into his chair with a huff. Iruka stopped short and instead turned to Kakashi with a smile. He gave the silver haired man a quick kiss before turning back to the grading. 

“You already do that. But I’ll have the benefit of knowing that you’re safer. Naruto will be happy to know you can spend more time with him too.” Iruka had a point, but Kakashi wasn’t ready to give up his argument quite yet. 

“They could still fail my test.”

Iruka hummed and even if his next words were a question it sounded like he already had an answer in mind. “But will they?”

“...I don’t know.” It was the unfortunate truth. With such varied backgrounds Kakashi would usually say they were doomed to fail. Neji, in particular, didn’t seem like a team player. But Lee was an odd ball and had picked up some of Naruto’s diplomacy on their playdates. And Tenten was an unknown factor in Kakashi’s mind, one that he would like to write off but couldn’t without having met her first. 

While mulling over his answer, Iruka pulled a flatten paper crane out of his grading. It had clearly been left there by a forgetful student. The teacher held it between his fingers for a moment, giving the origami a distant smile before adjusting it back to its original glory. He turned to place it on a bookshelf behind him then looked back over to Kakashi once he was finished. “They’re the first group to make you question whether or not they’ll pass. I’m choosing to believe in them.” 

“Is there a reason for that? Did you teach them?” 

Iruka shook his head. “No, but I’ve spoken to their teacher.”

“Any tips on how to handle them?” At this point Kakashi was feeling desperate. He would take any advice he could get when handling three wet-behind-the-ears genin. 

The cackle Kakashi received in response to his question was both cruel and unforgiving. “Oh, I would suggest you give up now and do what they want. They’re a handful.”

“Wonderful. You’ve been so much help.” Kakashi sunk into his chair, not wanting to admit he was pouting.

Another laugh rang through the apartment, this one lighter and kind. Iruka sent Kakashi a smile, one that lit up the room. “Happy to provide.”

\------------

The test was supposed to go poorly for the team, but it was only turning out that way for Kakashi. He went through the explanation, detailing how the kids needed to get the bells from him and how they wouldn’t be allowed to eat lunch if they didn’t. That’s when the group hit the first road block. As luck would have it, none of the kids had listened to Kakashi’s previous warning to not eat. Apparently Gai interfered after Kakashi dismissed them the previous day. The other man instructed all the kids to eat because “fueling the body is essential in the springtime of youth!” He may also have heavily hinted that it was a trick set up by Kakashi to leave them all weak for their first fight. So now one aspect of the test was already lacking: The kids wouldn’t be motivated by hunger. 

The second problem came when Kakashi started the test. At first everything was going to plan. Tenten and Neji both took off to hide and, as predicted, Lee tried to face Kakashi directly. They went back and forth for a few minutes before Kakashi got bored and threw Lee into the lake. Lee, however, didn’t resurface. When Kakashi finally broke down and went to investigate he found nothing, leaving him wondering just what had happened. He knew Lee couldn’t use a substitution or transformation jutsu, leaving him with a few different theories. The first was that one of the other kids had managed to sneak Lee out of the lake. The next was that Lee actually could use simple jutsus and had lied to be underestimated as a tactical decision, although that seemed very unlike Lee. The last was that the person Kakashi had been fighting was actually a disguised shadow clone that had dispersed when it went underwater. No matter the case, Kakashi knew he needed to start paying attention. These kids were obviously more clever than he originally anticipated. 

He didn’t bother to hide the hand signs as he made three shadow clones to start searching the area, although he did use a substitution jutsu with the forth one he quickly made. The forth clone went back to his book, leaving the other three clones to explore the area and find the kids. Kakashi concealed himself in a tree and waited for the clones to report back. It didn’t take long for the sounds of battle to direct him to the south side of the training field. 

There, hidden amongst the trees, Lee was taking on one of the clones. Kakashi had purposefully made them weak so it didn’t surprise him when Lee landed a strong enough blow to disperse it. What did surprise him, however, was the kick that came from behind him. Kakashi was forced to hop out of the tree to dodge, only to have a rain of weapons come down on him. He flew through the hand signs and managed to switch places with a log just in time, only to be attacked by a very proud Lee. The boy was fast, his years of training with Gai finally shining through and Kakashi was pushed back into a clearing in the trees. His book had been long since forgotten but he didn’t want to pull out all the stops and use the sharingan just yet — not for these brats. 

Of course, Kakashi soon regretted this because once in the clearing he heard the tell-tale cry of a Hyuga beginning the gentle fist technique from behind him. By this time another clone had shown up and he was once again able to use a substitution jutsu to escape. The clone disappeared with a pop and Kakashi made quick work of retreating. 

The planned out attack had him slightly shaken, but not enough to miss the wires delicately lacing the trees surrounding the clearing. It only took a few seconds for Kakashi to understand what was about to happen before he heard Tenten shout “Release!” causing all the trees close by to explode. Kakashi brought up a wall of earth to protect himself, then reinforced it to provide some cover while he took a few moments to think. 

These kids were starting to annoy him. Kakashi wanted to blame Gai for how well they were doing but he knew the other man was too honorable to cheat. If he was going to see his son succeed, Gai wouldn’t give Lee the answers to Kakashi’s test. The only reason he gave them the tip about eating was because Gai had pointed out in the past how unfair it was to let your team go into a fight hungry. 

Now though, Kakashi had to figure out exactly what was happening. Had the kids planned to work together from the start? Or did they only team up half way through? The more Kakashi thought about it, the more it was looking like the kids came into the test prepared. He still stood by the knowledge that Lee couldn’t use jutsu, meaning that from the very beginning one of the kids had produced a clone of Lee to fight Kakashi, giving the rest of them the chance to escape and prepare their trap. Ironically enough, underestimating them was Kakashi’s downfall at the beginning of his test, as he had never seen a group of kids who were this different choose to work together so quickly. It left him in a difficult spot. Technically the kids had passed but deep down, Kakashi still didn’t want to take on a genin team. There was a deep rooted fear of being a bad team leader that he never wanted to face, but he also knew if he tried to fail this team the Hokage would roll his eyes at Kakashi and call him on his bullshit. So he had to pass the kids. Unless he could get them to fail themselves.

Kakashi gave his watch a quick glance, happy to see that there were only about ten minutes left until noon. It was quiet, meaning that it was only a matter of time before the kids found Kakashi and came at him with all they had. 

The sizzle of explosive tags was Kakashi’s only warning before the walls of earth he had made crumbled around him. Not one to waste time, Kakashi took off into the trees, the sound of three sets of sandals right on his heels. The explosion gave away their position and the remaining clones came to Kakashi’s defense, running past him to take on the kids. They were quickly dispersed but slowed the kids down enough that Kakashi made it back to the spot where the team had started. There was a minute left and by the time the kids finally caught up to him, their time was out. 

“Well, looks like none of you got the bells.” 

Neji, surprisingly, spoke up first. “That wasn’t a fair test.”

“How so?” Kakashi kept his voice cool, even while mentally agreeing with the kid. It wasn’t fair to him at all. They had done exactly what they were supposed to do and were jeopardizing his track record of failing all the teams he was assigned. 

“You agreed to meet us at the training field hours ago. Because you arrived late we were not able to procure the bells in time.” Neji made a good point, but Kakashi already had an answer in mind.

“An enemy won’t tell you when they’re arriving.”

“I thought you were supposed to be our teacher, not our enemy.” This back and forth with Neji was both enlightening and frustrating for Kakashi. The kid was smart, too smart in fact. Taking him down a peg would be even more difficult than Kakashi had originally anticipated. 

Kakashi hummed and pulled out his book. Today he was reading a novel Iruka had suggested to him. Of course, he still hid everything he read behind the dust jacket of an Icha Icha book. His deal with Iruka to not read porn in public didn’t say anything about what he led people to believe. And the faces of the kids were priceless. “This was a battle simulation. In this case you should have seen me as your enemy. I told you to not hold back at the beginning.”

“We deserve the time we were promised,” Neji continued to argue, even if his expression was twisted with disgust. 

“Fine. I’ll even make you a deal. Neji, you and Tenten can have lunch. You both proved to me that you are skilled enough to pass the test given the chance. Lee didn’t show me he has that skill and will get left out of lunch. Be prepared to show me what you can do after the others are done eating, Lee.” To add insult to injury, Kakashi made his decision visible as well by throwing Neji and Tenten each a bell. 

Tenten chose that moment to enter the conversation. Quite loudly. “That’s not fair! We all worked together, we should all get bells!” 

“As much as I hate to agree, Tenten is right. Lee was a crucial part of the plan, even if we did use him as a decoy.” The Hyuga sneered as he spoke, clearly disliking the idea of working with Lee. While Kakashi understood his reservations about the boy, he also knew that Lee was a pretty good kid and didn’t deserve any harassment from a snobby brat like Neji. 

“Well life isn’t always fair, now is it?”

They all looked thoughtful for a moment and just when Kakashi was ready to announce that they failed, Tenten perked up.

“I have an idea! Neji, give me your bell for a second!”

The boy hesitated but handed over his bell. She threw both bells into the air and with a throw of two shuriken split them in half. She handed Neji two halves, then took two halves for herself. She handed the metal balls that had been inside the bells to Lee, then turned to look back at Kakashi defiantly. 

“There. Now we all have parts of the bells. We’ll split the two lunches.” 

Lee could be heard sniffling but when he turned to Kakashi he took up a power pose. “Our youthful power is stronger together than it ever was apart!”

The last member of the team just nodded, a slight scowl on his face. But Neji was in agreement with the other two and that could only mean one thing.

Kakashi hung his head and said goodbye to his freedom. “You pass.”

“You could sound a little bit more excited.” Despite his statement, Neji also didn’t seem very enthusiastic to have officially become part of this team. 

Jumping on the opportunity to be as loud as possible, Lee happily began to dance around and shout. “Then I will be excited for Uncle Kakashi! We did it! Hooray!”

“Wait, this guy’s your uncle?” Tenten rapidly looked between Kakashi and Lee, trying to see the resemblance. When she found none she started to rub her temple.

“He is not my uncle by blood but rather by friendship!” The green spandex clad kid gave her a thumbs up and a smile which she weakly returned. 

Neji rolled his eyes. “You make less and less sense the more you speak.”

“He means to say that his adopted father Gai and I are friends, so he grew up around me. I actually tried to talk the Hokage out of giving me you guys as a team because of that.” Kakashi explained.

“Wow, act more enthused.” The Hyuga huffed and turned away from the group entirely. 

“You remind me of my boyfriend’s kid. I’ll have to introduce you to Sasuke sometime. You two will get along like a house on fire.” Kakashi looked back over his new team and sighed. “I think we’ve all had quite enough of each other for one day. I’m heading out, you three stay and chat if you want. Bye.” 

Before the group could get a word in, Kakashi disappeared into the trees. The day was only half over but already he felt drained. In an effort to make himself feel better Kakashi decided to swing by the school and see if Iruka was on his break. The other man would tease him for passing the kids but even still, seeing the teacher smiling always made Kakashi feel better. 

\---------------

The next day Kakashi set the kids up to do some basic sparing. He pitted Neji against Lee and instructed them to only use basic taijutsu, no advanced techniques. Seeing Lee get a kick in on Neji right away had Kakashi smiling slightly. He would slowly begin to lower the Hyuga’s ego and would start to work on chakra control with Lee later. For the first few days, he wanted to concentrate on Tenten. As far as he could tell, she was run of the mill in every way, shape, and form. She had a pretty basic grasp on most skills and only excelled when it came to weapon combat and ninja tools. This, however, was Kakashi’s biggest worry. A well rounded shinobi was a shinobi that lived another day. The moment an enemy figured out that you only had one strength they would move to a better offensive position and take you down. Tenten, while trained to handle many different weapons, needed to work on her ninjutsu and genjutsu if she wanted to do well in the field. And seeing how Kakashi planned on turning his team into a powerhouse best suited for combat on the front lines, Tenten definitely had a long way to go.

“Tenten, while the boys spar we’re going to start on some elemental work.” Kakashi motioned for her to follow. She did, but not without protesting as she walked. 

“But we just graduated! We don’t even know how to control our chakra that much!”

The man shrugged as he led her to the far end of the field. From here he could still keep an eye on the other two but not have them distract Tenten too much. “Are you telling me you can’t do it?”

The girl crossed her arms, suddenly defensive of her abilities. Her nose scrunched up and Kakashi had a feeling that she knew just as well as he did that she was currently the weakest member of the team in terms of raw power. “No! I’m just saying maybe I should be practicing something else. Something that’s more in my comfort zone.”

“Like weapons?” 

“Yeah!”

“You won’t be touching your weapons for some time.” The way her jaw almost hit the ground had Kakashi holding back laughter. 

“What? No, I’m going to keep training with my tools!” Her determination was good to see but as her teacher, Kakashi knew he needed to interfere before she became a one trick pony. 

“In your own time, but not while I’m teaching you.” As he spoke Kakashi pulled out a few basic items to test chakra affinities. Tenten gave them a glance but then met his eye once more. 

“Why not? I’m good with a lot of different weapons, isn’t that a good thing?”

“It is, but it’s also your greatest weakness."

For a moment she considered this, but when no answer came to her, Tenten shook her head and let loose a frustrated sigh. “I don’t understand. If it’s my strength, how can it be my weakness too?”

“Let’s say I’m an enemy ninja. You and I start fighting and you keep using different ninja tools. Pretty soon I’m going to figure out that you only have one skill and I’ll be able to easily eliminate you. You spit tools out of scrolls and hope they land or you come at me with a sword and pray I don’t move out of range. You need more skills to be able to fight different enemies. So for now we are going to work on finding out which element you are best suited for and train you on that.” Kakashi laid it out for her, trying to get Tenten to understand the intricacies of the lesson he had planned. If this didn’t get through to her Kakashi knew he would have to go to Iruka for other ideas on training the young woman on something other than weapons. 

“Why aren’t Neji and Lee part of this lesson too?” It was hard to tell if she was trying to distract Kakashi or not, so he decided to see just how intelligent she was instead of giving her an easy answer. 

“I think you can answer that question for me.”

She paused for a moment, turning to watch her teammates, humming before commenting on what she already knew. “Lee, well, he’s really not good at ninjutsu or genjutsu. At all. I hear the only reason he passed the academy exam is because his dad asked the school to give him a special test. But I don’t think Neji has anything wrong. In fact, I think he’s kind of perfect.”

“He is quite good at some things, yes, but I want you to pay attention to his sparring. Notice anything?” 

Tenten continued to observe the two boys fight, paying attention to the way they moved, their every step. As she watched, Kakashi saw the gears in her head turning, desperately trying to see what Kakashi saw. Finally, after a few long minutes something clicked and she turned back to him in shock. “He’s angry?”

“Yes. Can you guess why?”

“I think… I think it’s because Lee is better at basic taijutsu than he is. You told him to not use anything other than basic taijutsu, that includes byakugan. In a fight where he can’t use his clan's skills or his kekkai genkai Neji would lose. It’s hard to see but once you notice it you can’t ignore it. Neji’s furious right now.” Kakashi reached out and patted her head. She ducked away, causing her hair to become disarrayed. While she tried her best to fix it Kakashi built on what she had already said.

“It’s not just right now. Neji is always mad, and it will be his downfall.”

“Is there a way to help?” In that instance Kakashi caught a small glimpse of another person. Someone who was just as willing to help, just as kind, just as thoughtful. He shook away the intrusive thoughts, not wanting to compare his old teammates to his new team. 

“I’ve already got some ideas. Don’t worry too much about that though. For now, we’re going to get back to your training.”

By the end of the morning Tenten had managed to surprise Kakashi and show very strong pulls towards both fire and wind elements. Still, she stubbornly held onto the idea that weapons were the best way to fight and Kakashi had to resort to desperate means, just to get her to agree to further training.

“Tenten, wouldn’t your weapons be much more powerful with wind behind them, giving them extra force? Or fire on the blade, causing more damage to the enemy?” The way her eyes lit up should have concerned Kakashi more, but he was just glad to finally get her to agree with him. 

It was when they went on their first D-ranked mission later that day that Kakashi noticed something. He watched the two boys both try to start working on the same spot on a wall to paint and when their eyes met, Kakashi was sure he would have to step in to stop the ensuing fight. When Tenten did it for him, however, he stayed back to watch. She spoke to both boys in a firm voice, one that didn’t leave room for questioning and gave strict directions, leading both kids to separate and begin their work on painting the fence. Tenten nodded to herself seeing that there would be no fight and continued on her way to paint her own section. Kakashi thought back to the previous day. The group had come into the test ready to work together, which spoke of someone rallying the boys. The only possible person who could have done this was Tenten, meaning she had managed to see through Kakashi’s test before he even started it. 

As the kids worked, Kakashi plotted. Team leaders were always difficult to find. Ninja tended to be very strong willed and a leader had to be able to counter than and still be trusted afterwards. If Tenten had the ability to wrangle these two hot heads, Kakashi could see her leading an entire squad. That would be years away still but if he gave her some gentle nudges and quiet advice, he might not even have to do much to get her to that point. Not only that, but Kakashi couldn’t help but entertain the idea of the genin team eventually conducting themselves, giving Kakashi more time to spend with Naruto and maybe Iruka and Sasuke too. 

\---------------

“Kakashi-sensei, I can’t do it!”

This was the third time Lee had told him this but this time there were tears. Kakashi stood firm, not giving into the water works. He knew this was for Lee’s own good but the kid didn’t want to see it that way.

It had been a few months since Kakashi had passed the team and they were making… interesting progress. Tenten was still stubborn as ever when it came to weapons but she was also beginning to understand Kakashi’s reasoning for learning new things. The fact that she could now keep up with Neji in basic taijutsu and beat Lee in a fight if she was allowed to use ninjutsu did wonders for her confidence, as well as her ego. By far, she had made the most progress.

Neji was slowly but surely becoming more angry, but Kakashi wasn’t too disappointed by this. He had long since suspected that this wasn’t a problem he would be able to easily fix, but seeing the boy hurting wasn’t something Kakashi enjoyed. The breaking point was coming and when it did Kakashi would be ready to act accordingly. Until then, he would keep tearing down the boy’s mental walls, little by little, until his ego had dropped significantly and his true feelings finally emerged. 

To say that Kakashi wasn’t expecting Lee to be his most difficult student was an understatement. With how positive and upbeat Lee was about everything, Kakashi had expected him to tackle his chakra control training with the same gusto. Instead, Lee grew frustrated. The group had started their training a few days ago, with all of them trying to climb a tree by controlling the chakra in their feet. 

It didn’t come as a surprise to anyone when Neji was the best at this skill but Kakashi didn’t compliment him for it. Instead he simply directed him to start practicing hanging upside down from a tree branch using the same method. The Hyuga became moody and moved away from the rest of the group to practice in peace. Kakashi suspected his real motive was to sulk and left him to it. After all, this lesson wasn’t really for him. 

Tenten wasn’t too far behind Neji but had struggled slightly with how much chakra she put out. She wanted to use more than she should, trying to force her feet to stick to the tree and being thrown off in the process. By the end of the morning she was doing much better and Kakashi had her move onto standing upside down as well. 

As expected, Lee was the worst of them all. He put little to no chakra into his feet and would simply fall as gravity pulled him back down. At the beginning he was as willing to try as the other two, but when he saw he was making no progress he slowly grew irritated. It was the first time Kakashi had seen the boy anything other than happy, and it was an experience to say the least. When Lee first asked to stop because he wasn’t getting it Kakashi had simply waved him off and told him to keep working. The next time Lee approached his teacher he had been more determined but a simple order from Kakashi had him back at the tree climbing. The last time, however, Kakashi could tell that Lee was done. He was emotionally burnt out and ready to fight Kakashi on it. What Lee didn’t know is that Kakashi had prepared to have that fight. 

“Lee, we’ve talked about this. It takes some people longer than others, but you’ll get it with practice.” He tried to go for the more simple approach but Lee wasn’t having it.

The boy looked ready to stomp his feet as tears began to gather at the corners of his eyes. As the group’s mediator Tenten began to make her way over to her distressed teammate, but Kakashi waved her off. He needed to be the one to deal with Lee. 

“No, I won’t! I practiced for hours and it didn’t change anything! I’ve never been able to use my chakra and I never will!” A few tears started to fall but Lee furiously scrubbed at his face before they could get far. 

Kakashi kept his composure while he spoke, doing his best to radiate confidence. “That’s ridiculous, you already use your chakra every day. You just don’t know how to control it yet.”

“What?” Lee looked up at his teacher with wide eyes. He blinked away the remaining tears as confusion took over. 

“Chakra is just the energy your body uses. It’s in all living things and all living things use it every day. Whether they control it or not, they use it. And so do you. Every punch you throw, every step you take, you are using chakra. You just aren’t aware of it. It’s difficult to accept that there are some things that take more work than others but Lee,” Kakashi grabbed the boy’s shoulders, ensuring he had 100% of the kid’s attention, “I’m not going to give up on you. Even if it takes us years we’re going to work on this until you’re using basic ninjutsu with the best of them. I don’t expect you to excel in this, but you will get the basics down and show the world that you are a capable and powerful shinobi. Understand?”

The tears had started up again but after years of being Gai’s best friend Kakashi could tell they were tears of determination. Gai was the only one Kakashi knew who cried when he became determined but somehow he passed this ability onto Lee. Quickly the tears became snot as well and that’s when Kakashi took a few steps back, passing Lee a tissue once he was out of range of being hugged. Lee had also picked up that nasty habit from Gai; hugging while crying. If it were possible Kakashi would try to teach that out of Lee but there were some fights that weren’t worth the effort. 

After a few moments of sniffling and loud nose blowing Lee finally got a hold of himself. His back went ramrod straight and he sent his teacher a sharp salute. “Yes, Kakashi-sensei!”

“Good, now get back at it!” 

“Yes sir!” 

\---------------

  
  


The breaking point came sooner than Kakashi had expected. It was only a few days after Lee started to show some signs of tree walking that Neji finally snapped. The group had been training once more, with Lee still running at trees at top speed while Neji and Tenten began water walking. Neji, once more, showed amazing skills but Kakashi still didn’t praise him. Instead he had a shadow clone make waves in the water for Neji to practice his stability on, while Tenten worked farther upstream with Kakashi. When Kakashi was suddenly hit with a wave of memories from the shadow clone being disbursed he looked over only to find Neji gone. The boy had attacked the shadow clone then run off once he had won the fight. Knowing what was coming, Kakashi instructed Tenten to keep an eye on Lee and continue to practice while he went after the angry Hyuga. 

It didn’t take long to hunt the boy down. He was fast but Kakashi had years of experience on him. And, from what the teacher could guess, Neji wasn’t trying to get away. He wanted this fight, he wanted to get that anger out. Kakashi was happy to provide if it meant getting to the bottom of the problem.

“Skipping out on training doesn’t seem very wise.” They were standing about ten feet apart, the edge of the training grounds in sight. 

Neji shrugged but Kakashi could see the emotion slipping past his previously undisturbed mask. “As I was left on my own I figured that it might be best to train elsewhere.” 

“You weren’t on your own. I left a shadow clone to help you.” The teacher pointed out.

“And that clone is gone now.” Neji turned to face Kakashi and the air between them grew suddenly colder.

“Because you attacked it.”

“It’s not like it was doing anything but being a nuisance,” the boy hissed. 

“Ah, so is that what you think of me?” He tried to take a casual step closer but Neji took two back in response. 

“Yes. You do nothing but read your perverted books and give orders. I suppose that’s to be expected, after all the rumors I’ve heard about you.” 

“Rumors?” Kakashi knew that despite adopting Naruto years ago there were some rumors he couldn’t shake, especially with certain people. The Hyuga clan wasn’t known for letting things go easily. 

“Cold-hearted. Friend-killer. I’m surprised they let you work with children, especially those with advanced bloodlines. After all, yours is stolen.” Years ago Kakashi would have winced at that reality but he had long since grown comfortable with the sharingan. It was a gift and he wasn’t going to let it go unused because some brat thought he was undeserving. 

There was a pause as Kakashi considered what to say next. When he finally came to a decision he met Neji’s eyes as he spoke. “And I suppose your bloodline makes a difference in who teaches you?”

“I deserve a teacher that will work with me to build my skills, not one who shoves me aside to teach the incompetent instead.” His words were biting and Neji puffed out his chest at the end just to emphasize his point. 

“You have an ego.”

“It’s not an ego if I have the abilities to back it up.”

“No, but it is when you think you are better than others.”

“I am better than the others.”

Kakashi sighed. They were going nowhere with any of this. “So I’m guessing you think you’re better than Lee? Better than Tenten?”

“Of course.”

“You’re wrong.” 

“I’m a genius, a prodigy.” More than anything Kakashi wanted to prove his point by just attacking the boy but he knew that would do nothing but alienate Neji from his teacher further. If Kakashi wanted to get through to the boy it would have to be with his words alone and he was beginning to doubt that they would be enough. 

Kakashi took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh. “I was too, but that didn’t stop me from understanding that someone’s always better than me.”

“It is my destiny to be like this. You wouldn’t understand.” The word destiny stuck out to Kakashi. It was his first glimpse at what Neji’s true beliefs were. 

“Oh really? So explain it to me.”

“Why should I?”

Pulling teeth must be easier than trying to talk to this kid, Kakashi thought. But he knew this conversation was important, that he had to keep going despite how difficult it was to continue. “Because I’m your teacher. I want to help you.”

“You’ve been favoring Lee and Tenten. I have no reason to come to you for help.” If Neji believed he deserved special treatment then Kakashi had no doubt his actions were considered favoritism. In fact, he had done his best to give all his students equal training and the only difference was his attitude towards each kid. The last thing Neji needed was praise to boost his ego even more.

Instead of voicing this, Kakashi tried for a different approach. “Have you ever considered that I might understand your situation.” Flashes of memory cluttered his mind for a moment, but he was quickly distracted when Neji raised his voice for the first time all day.

“Look closer at reality! My situation was decided by destiny. You can’t help me.” That word again, destiny. It hinted at something much bigger, something that Kakashi didn’t understand yet. 

“I can’t if you don’t let me try.”

“I’ll explain it to you then. Maybe once I’m done you’ll understand and give up on this illusion.” Then Neji talked. He went into detail, describing everything that Kakashi had feared and worse. The cursed seal wasn’t a Hyuga secret, but it wasn’t publicized for fear of their status in the village being tarnished. It was an archaic practice but one that the Hokage had no control over. When Neji moved on, anger began to seep into his tone. He described the events of his fathers death as he understood them and as he grew more furious Kakashi became more confused. That wasn’t how he remembered it going, but Neji was confident. He hated the main branch, and likely the village as well, after what happened to his father. By the time the boy was done he was practically panting as he took deep ragged breaths in an attempt to calm himself. Kakashi gave him some time. Once his breathing was back to normal Kakashi finally spoke.

“So you’re a caged bird, huh?” Kakashi knew his words wouldn’t be listened to and simply looked up to the clouds. 

“Yes. I carry the symbol of being tied down to an inescapable destiny. And the only thing that could free me of it is death.”

“You know Neji, even a captured bird, if it’s clever enough, will try to open the cage with its beak. Never giving up its desire to freely fly in the sky.” By the time he gave up his cloud gazing and looked back to the training field Neji was gone, and Kakashi was left with a decision to make. 


End file.
